Truck driver in deadly I-35 north Austin crash may have taken few opportunities for sleep, report says

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The driver of a truck that killed five people on Interstate 35 north of Austin in March 2025 was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol but may have been sleep-deprived before the crash, according to a new report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

One year after the crash that killed three adults, a child and an infant, a new National Transportation Safety Board report details Solomun Weldekeal Araya’s behavior in the days leading up to the crash, including his cell phone use, opportunities to sleep and trips to emergency care facilities.

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The accident occurred at 11:20 pm on March 13, 2025 on I-35 between Parmer Lane and Howard Lane and involved 17 vehicles. In addition to 5 deaths, 11 others were injured. The initial crash investigation was conducted by the Austin Police Department.

The NTSB collected data from Araya’s cellphone and electronic systems in his truck to create a timeline of his activities between midnight on March 10, 2025, and 11:30 p.m. on March 13, 2025.

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The agency divided Araya’s time into four categories: work, get off work, other activities and sleep opportunities. The report includes a chart showing time spent in each category, with an overlay showing how much time Araya was likely using her phone.

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Based on the analysis, the NTSB said Araya had the following total sleep opportunities in the days leading up to the crash:

• March 10: 4-hour sleep opportunity period

• March 11: 7 hours and 15 minutes of sleep opportunity

• March 12: 5 hours and 30 minutes of sleep opportunity

• March 13: 4 hours and 45 minutes of sleep opportunity

The NTSB said the “sleep opportunity period” is the time from the driver’s last known activity, including driving or using a cell phone, to the next activity.

According to reports, Araya’s cell phone was “turned on” one minute before the accident, but the phone showed no specific activity at the time of the accident.

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The report also stated that Araya went to an urgent care clinic around noon on March 13 for a “preventive screening for infectious diseases.”

“The National Transportation Safety Board’s report emphasizes that this was a tragic accident, not a crime,” Araya’s attorney, Bristol-Myers Squibb, said in a statement.

Myers added that Araya had a valid Texas CDL driver’s license at the time of the accident, that the truck was properly maintained, that Araya did not have any known health issues and that Araya was not found to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the accident.

“He wasn’t drunk. He wasn’t on drugs. They ran as many tests as they could on his blood. It came back clean,” Myers said. “They checked his phone. He was not on the phone, texting or on social media at the time of the accident.”

“There is nothing in the NTSB report that indicates the law requires ‘conscious creation of a risk’ to prove reckless conduct,” Myers said.

Tests of blood samples obtained during APD’s investigation of the crash “did not reveal the presence of alcohol or other drugs,” the NTSB report said.

Solomun Weldekeal Araya faces five counts of manslaughter and 17 counts of aggravated assault – all felonies. The full National Transportation Safety Board report, which will include the “probable causes” of the crash, has not yet been released.

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