A Ford Mustang driven by a 22-year-old woman from Florida was traveling southbound on Old Clyattville Road at the time of the accident. A Ford F-150 traveling in the northbound lane attempted to pass a northbound school bus and collided head-on with the Mustang about two miles away from Interstate 75. The 22-year-old woman and her passenger, a 23-year-old Valdosta man, died as a result of their injuries. Emergency crews took the F-150’s driver, a 34-year-old Valdosta man, to South Georgia Medical Center in Valdosta in serious condition.
No passengers were aboard the school bus, and no one else suffered any injuries in the accident. A reconstruction team continued to investigate the crash at the time of reports. The team’s findings will determine whether charges will be filed against the pickup truck’s driver.
Even though they may be in a passing zone, drivers must only pass vehicles in front of them when it is safe to do so. By making unsafe passing maneuvers, reckless drivers endanger the people in lanes of oncoming traffic and the motorists in their lanes. The families of deceased motor vehicle accident victims are often burdened with the costs of burial and other financial damages in addition to the grief and stress of losing their loved ones. Families sometimes consider seeking compensation from the driver whose negligence was the cause of the collision for their losses and their expenses.
Source: WALB, “Names released in fatal Lowndes County crash”, Feb. 26, 2015
