In previous posts we discussed the disturbing statistics surrounding teen car accident deaths. Car accidents are the leading killer of Tennessee teenagers and responsible for approximately 4,000 deaths every year.
Car accidents involving teens are usually attributable to inexperience. These accidents are especially serious when a semi-truck is involved. Highway accidents between passenger vehicles and trucks frequently involve severe personal injuries and fatalities because passenger vehicles are significantly smaller than trucks.
A truck accident killed three Trousdale County teenagers last weekend. The pickup containing the teens crashed with a semi-truck on Highway 141 near Hartsville last Friday shortly before 1 p.m.
Area residents claim that the stretch of the highway between Hartsville and Lebanon frequently sees serious car accidents because of its winding design and speeding motorists.
The accident happened when one of the teens overcorrected his pickup after losing control of the vehicle and leaving the shoulder of the road. The pickup sailed across the center line of the road into opposing traffic and was hit by a semi-truck.
The semi-truck smashed into the pickup's passenger side and immediately killed a 16-year-old and a 15-year-old. Emergency crews rushed a third teen to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, but the second 15-year-old died later that day. The teens were freshmen at Trousdale County High School according to the Tennessean. A makeshift memorial was created at the crash site containing flowers, candles, and notes.
The truck driver was uninjured. Drug and alcohol tests were conducted on both drivers although it is unclear whether police suspect that alcohol contributed to the accident.
Source: The Tennessean, "Friday wreck is fatal for 3 Trousdale teenagers," Jenny Upchurch, 5/15/11; News Channel 5, "School Offers Grief Counseling in Wake of Student Deaths," 5/15/11