72-year old Craven Presson died after a car crash that took place on US 321 in Watauga County, NC. According to NC Highway Patrol, Presson who was in his 2005 Chevy sedan was driving northbound when he suddenly crossed the center line and struck a southbound 2005 Volvo tractor-trailer head-on. Presson was immediately airlifted to Johnson City Regional Medical Center where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
Dayton Cook, the driver of the tractor-trailer was taken to Watauga Medical Center and was treated for minor injuries and later released. N.C. Troopers said Presson’s body will still be undergoing autopsy to know if he suffered medical trauma prior to the crash that caused his death. Emergency responders and fire-fighters had to close off the section of the highway in order to perform a haz-mat clean-up from the massive debris and fuel spilled from the turned over big rig.
The majority of fatal crashes involving tractor-trailer trucks include trucks that are pulling one trailer. A recent survey showed that 64% of fatal truck crashes had one trailer. Thirty-two percent of those involved single-unit trucks (no trailer) and fewer than 4% of those involved multi-trailer vehicles (more than one trailer). The majority of fatal truck accidents occur in rural areas (68 percent) during the daytime (66 percent) and on weekdays (78 percent).
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