A crash on U.S. Highway 301 in Bradford County involving a log truck killed two people Thursday morning and led to other vehicles also wrecking to avoid the accident.
Bradford County Fire Rescue responded to the area of US 301 and Northwest 265th Street, north of Lawtey. The Bradford County Sheriff’s Office, Florida Highway Patrol, and Clay County Fire Rescue also responded.
Troopers say a log truck was exiting a private roadway and attempting to make a left turn onto US 301 Northbound. A pickup truck was traveling southbound on US 301.
The pickup collided with the log truck and became lodged underneath the trailer. The driver, a 23-year-old male, and the passenger, an 18-year-old male, died at the scene. The driver of the log truck was not injured.
The crash caused a second crash between a sedan and a dump truck. Both vehicles were traveling southbound on US 301 and veered off the roadway in an attempt to avoid the initial crash. They hit each other on the shoulder and came to a final rest on the southbound shoulder. Both of those vehicles have minor damage and one person was transported to the hospital with a minor injury.
Southbound lanes were blocked as troopers investigated the crash and crews worked to clear the roadway.
Judith Young works at an automotive shop near US 301 says she sees law enforcement responding to crashes all the time.
“We do have the bypass and the interchange right there and that does yield a lot of accidents in that area, but this particular stretch where the accident was this morning is a straight dimly lit stretch of roadway,” Young said. “And most people take that opportunity to check their Facebook.”
She says they service fleet trucks in the morning and a lot of people were late to their appointments due to the road closure.
“I probably after the reroute a lot of people had to take, I probably wouldn’t have even wanted to come to work today. I would’ve just wanted to go home,” Young said.
She says that drivers need to watch their surroundings when traveling.
“There’s several other things but the biggest part of it is going to be the due diligence of the drivers themselves to pay attention to what’s going on in the road in front of them,” Young shared.
Fire officials want drivers to stay vigilant.
“The normal tips of remain aware, alert and don’t be texting and driving. Be cautious of your surroundings,” Bradford County Fire Chief, Dylan Rodgers said.
Troopers say the traffic homicide investigation will take 60 to 90 days.
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Source: WCJB
