A sleepy driver who nodded off while crossing the Chesapeake Bay Bridge early Sunday morning is likely to blame for the fatal crash that killed a truck driver, according to published reports and witness statements.

Candy Baldwin, 19, the driver of one of the three vehicles involved in the collision, told the The Washington Post she fell asleep while driving home from a family wedding. 

Two days after the deadly accident, the state's collision reconstruction unit is re-enacting the accident with a similar truck and black Camaro.

Investigators believe Baldwin's eastbound 1997 Camaro veered into the path of a truck driven by  57-year-old John Short. Seung Won Hong, 41, and his brother-in-law were driving behind the Camaro that morning at about 45 or 50 mph, and witnessed what happened.

"I didn't notice the Camaro until seconds before the collision," he said "Until I noticed it veering strangely into traffic." 

In a phone interview, Hong told ABC 7/NewsChannel 8 reporter Kris Van Cleave that after the collision, the truck locked its brakes and jack-knifed. He said the trailer entered his lane, scraping the back of his car, before the entire tractor trail plunged off the bridge.

Hong said he and his passenger were a matter of inches from death.

"That's what bothers me everytime I talk about this," he said, "It sends my heart pumping; it's very scary."

Minutes later, an Anne Arundel County 911 dispatcher got a call from bridge officials to report the crash.

Caller: "This is the bridge, can you send us a couple units to help out?"
Dispatcher: "Sure. What do you got?"
Caller: "We've got a multi-car accident with a tractor-trailer in the water"

Short was killed in the crash. Baldwin was seriously injured. She remains hospitalized at Shock Trauma in Baltimore.

"After she realizes what's really happened, I think it's going to be a traumatic experience for her life," said, Sandra Morgan, who was crossing the bridge on her way to Ocean City with her grandchildren Tuesday.  "It's definitely scary when they are coming at you on the same side," said Morgan. 

Many drivers said there was just no room for even a minor driving mistake, especially when a single span of the bridge is configured for two-way traffic.

"It is awful. It's the second time in a year and a half that something like that has happened," driver Doug Tribull said. 

Police are now checking 911 records to see if any other drivers complained about a car swerving before the wreck. 

Short's family had maintained that he was killed while trying to dodge other drivers on the tight bridge. They say he'd made it clear before his death he never wanted to hurt anyone with his truck.

"He was always afraid; I mean he was a lot bigger," said, Renee Salgado, Short's daughter. "He was a great man and I know that he did everything he could."

The crash snarled traffic heading back from the beach Sunday afternoon, causing a 14-mile backup. Monday morning's commute was also impacted because only one lane of the eastbound span was open; the right lane reopened late Monday.

The break in the Jersey wall has been repaired with a steel beam and traffic is moving. Federal Transportation officials are investigating whether or not more could have been done to prevent the accident, focusing on the bridge's structure and traffic control measures.

All lanes of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge were reopened Monday afternoon; 36 hours after the incident. 

At the time of the crash, the westbound span was closed for maintenance and construction so both directions of traffic were sharing the eastbound span of the bridge, police said. It's unclear if that played any role in the crash. 

Short's son, John Short, Jr., said his father was filling in for another driver when he crashed. About 1 a.m. Saturday, Short received a phone call.

"He was just leaving. He wasn't even supposed to go; it was just a freak thing," he said.

Short Sr. moved to Willards a few years ago from Virginia. He went to work as a truck driver for a nearby business. Short Jr. believes, from what investigators tell him, his father did not cause the crash. "He was doing everything he could to avoid the accident when a when it happened," he said.

His son said his father planned to shift to full time dispatching soon, and leave truck driving and the dangers of the road behind.

The crash has also renewed fears for many motorists who cross the bridge.

Bowie's Charletta Perry says she never liked driving over the Bay Bridge, and that this accident didn't calm her fears.

"My daughter was saying, 'Mommy, why don't you drive over the bridge this time?' I was going to try it, but then I heard about the accident and I said, 'I can't do it. I can't do it.'"

Perry said she's so unnerved that she's paying $25 for someone else to drive her car across.

Mount Airy resident, Mary Beth, thought the accident was, "kinda scary. The thought that a truck could go over, you think that it would never happen."

Trucker Frank Mass was scared as well. His oversized load couldn't go across the bridge until repairs were finished. Even then, he said, it's not something he's looking forward to. "It's pretty scary when trucks are forced to ride on the right side, you drive and you look down there and all you have is little cables to keep you from falling in there. It's not very secure. It's not very reassuring."

Police are not commenting on whether drugs or alcohol played a factor in the fatal crash. They are asking for anyone who saw the accident to call them at 443-865-9699.