Gerald Reid, 43, of Raleigh, died Thursday at Duke Hospital, according to the state Highway Patrol.

The accidents started just before 8:40 a.m. on March 1 after a minor rear-end collision between two vehicles traveling in the westbound lanes near the North Harrison Avenue exit in Cary.

The fender-bender caused traffic to slow, leading to a chain reaction of crashes that started when a tractor-trailer plowed into the rear of a Honda Accord that was being driven by Reid.

The Honda ended up underneath the truck and was being dragged along when both it and the truck rammed into the rear of a Saturn.

The Saturn spun out of control and hit a Toyota Camry, which then struck two more vehicles.

The driver of the Saturn, Karen Jensen, 39, of Raleigh, was transported to WakeMed-Raleigh.

The driver of the tractor-trailer, Thomas Harris, 43, of Roseboro was taken to Rex Hospital, as was the driver of the Camry, Phyllis Burt, 60, of Raleigh, said Sgt. Jorge Brewer of the Highway Patrol.

Reid was in critical condition following the accident, said Trooper I.J. Cooper of the state Highway Patrol.

"The vehicles were already on the shoulder of the road," Cooper said. "It wasn't even in the roadway."

The accidents brought westbound traffic to a halt and slowed eastbound traffic.

Charges are pending.