A North Carolina woman plunged to her death after passing by closed road signs, bypassing concrete barriers and driving off an embankment.
Emergency services responded to a call reporting that a car had been driven off the road and down an embankment in Lake Junaluska around 8 p.m. on Saturday.
Firefighters arrived to assist with a rescue operation, according to a Facebook update from the department. They used a rope to repel down the embankment and found a vehicle on its side with a woman inside.
She was rescued and rushed to a nearby hospital where she died from her injuries the next day, per WYFF 4.
Hurricane Helene left gaping holes in the eastbound lanes of I-40 in the area.
Authorities say the 62-year-old woman drove the wrong way up a ramp onto the road and plunged 100 feet off of the road.
They say there were no signs she had attempted to brake.
