One killed in Hwy. 104 wreck

By Crystal Burns

 

A two-vehicle wreck on Hwy. 104 in Trenton resulted in one fatality Wednesday morning, Oct. 14 around 11 a.m.

According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol crash report, Jonathan Watford, 39, of Newbern was killed. His wife, Stacy Watford, 40, was injured. Air Evac airlifted her to the trauma center at the Med in Memphis.

According to the report, the couple was traveling westbound on Hwy. 104 in a 2003 Ford F-150. Mr. Watford was the driver. Shawn Crum, 49, of Halls was driving a 1999 Kenworth gravel truck northbound on Hwy. 457. The vehicles collided at the intersection of Hwy. 104 and Hwy. 457. Crum was uninjured.

Crum was arrested and charged with driving on a revoked/suspended license and booked into the Gibson County Correctional Office around 3 p.m. Oct. 14. He was released later that day.

Gibson County Fire Chief Bryan Cathey said county fire/rescue/first responder stations from Spring Hill and Brazil and the Trenton Fire Department responded to the scene. The fire departments used a fire apparatus to close the four-lane as soon as they arrived, posting the emergency vehicles to protect the patients and first responders.

Shortly after firefighters arrived, TDOT, Trenton Police Department, Tennessee Highway Patrol, and the Gibson County Sheriff’s Office took over traffic control. The four-lane remained closed for four hours.

Fire and rescue personnel had to extricate the driver from the pickup. Cathey said it took about seven minutes. Personnel also checked for fuel leaks and other hazards and assisted Gibson County EMS with the injured patient.

Firefighters set up a landing zone for Air Evac. The helicopter was able to land on the four-lane.

After wreckers removed both vehicles from the roadway, TDOT used a street sweeper to remove nails and other hazards from the highway.

The Highway Patrol says the crash is still under investigation.