Killen man killed when car collides with tractor

[ScoutmasterRick]

Another car/tractor collision. Not enough info to determine exactly what happened and who was at fault, but certainly a reminder to be careful out there.

Killen man killed when car collides with tractor

Killen man killed when car collides with tractor
By Tom Smith Senior Staff Writer | 0 comments

CENTER STAR A Lauderdale County man was killed when the tractor he was driving was struck by a car on U.S. 72 Thursday evening, authorities said.

Senior Trooper Johnathan Appling, a public information officer for the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, said Bobby Wade Cochran, 55 Lauderdale 33, Killen, died from injuries he sustained in the accident.

Reports indicate the wreck occurred just after 6 p.m., four miles east of Killen.

Appling said a 2006 Buick driven by Celeste Kay Wills, 41, of Florence, collided with the 1973 Massey Ferguson tractor Cochran was driving.

Lauderdale County Coroner Andy High pronounced Cochran dead at the scene. He said Cochran died from massive blunt force trauma to the body.

Reports indicate Wills and Cochran were both traveling west on U.S. 72.

Emergency personnel at the scene said Cochran was pulling what appeared to be a 6-foot bush hog behind the tractor.

Authorities at the scene said it appeared the collision knocked the bush hog loose from the tractor and it came to rest in the middle of the highway.

The tractor, officials said, was knocked off the north side of the road, down into a ditch, where it ended up on its side.

Cochran was thrown from the tractor and landed in the highway.

Appling said Wills was transported to Eliza Coffee Memorial Hospital in Florence by Shoals Ambulance. Her condition was unknown late Thursday.

Thursday痴 fatality is the fourth in the past 10 days in the region. Three people died in three accidents last week, one in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, one in Lauderdale County and one in Franklin County.

Reports indicate there have been 16 traffic fatalities so far this year in the northwest Alabama region and southern Tennessee counties of Wayne and Lawrence. Of those 16 fatal accidents, nine have occurred in May.

Troopers said the cause of Thursday痴 accident remains under investigation by the Quad-Cities Troopers Post.

Tom Smith can be reached at 256-740-5757 or tom.smith@TimesDaily.com. Follow on Twitter @TD_TomSmith.

 

[Raised on a Deere]

This type report is so frequent, "car collides with tractor" and it just drives me to consternation wanting to know what happened. Most just make no sense. 40 years ago a neighbor in KY was driving his tractor on the grass, completely off the road and was rammed from behind by a car. The only report that went out was "car collides with tractor." But in this case I went to the crash site immediately and could clearly see the collision point, from dig marks in the grass, where his rear tires suddenly were pushed, and other telling marks that made it plain what had happened. No explanation was ever dealt with as to why the car, estimated speed 60MPH, was in the grass. The farmer lived about 1/3 mile from a gas station just up the road and to get gas he would go up and down the right of way to the gas station on the same side of the road where he lived.

 

[RoyJackson]

One thing I'm guessing may have been a cause of this accident is lack of visibility...in this case, the 1973 MF may not have had warning lights of any sort. It may not have had a SMV reflective sign either.
According to the article, this accident happened shortly after 6:00 PM...close to dusk.
Without some type of warning lighting and considering the speed differential between the car and tractor...well, that's a high potential situation. In this case, the potential was realized.

As a tractor owner in a fairly rural (and agricultural) area, I'm quite observant of tractors and such. However, I've come up behind tractors at dusk and had a few fairly close calls.

 

[Silvic]

One thing I'm guessing may have been a cause of this accident is lack of visibility...in this case, the 1973 MF may not have had warning lights of any sort. It may not have had a SMV reflective sign either.
According to the article, this accident happened shortly after 6:00 PM...close to dusk.
Without some type of warning lighting and considering the speed differential between the car and tractor...well, that's a high potential situation. In this case, the potential was realized.

As a tractor owner in a fairly rural (and agricultural) area, I'm quite observant of tractors and such. However, I've come up behind tractors at dusk and had a few fairly close calls.

Unless this report is from months ago , I don't know where this time of year it is even close to dusk shortly after 6 PM. Even at the leading edge of the time zone the sun would be up for quite some time. Not even low enough to be a setting sun in the eyes if a west bound road.

 

[Thomas]

What a shame.

Few years back college students enter dirt road corner rear ended wagon of bale hay that evening,driver said he just didn't see him nobody hurt bad and the car was total.

 

[Citydude]

I contract mow right of ways for the small city I live in. I'm not tying start anything by saying this, it's just my own personal observation. Cell phones and young female drivers are the biggest hazard I encounter. I always mow against the flow the first two passes while mowing the shoulder so I can watch vehicles coming toward me. The vast majority of, as I said, young female drivers are either talking on their phones or looking at their phones texting. Most male drivers regardless of age give me plenty of room and move over as a courtesy unless they are on their cell phones which in most cases are younger drivers. Most female drivers do not move over and seem not to even acknowledge I'm there. Of course I have no data to back this up, just observation. Im not a chauvinist as I'm married to a wonderful woman who is a circuit court judge for the state of Wyoming and have two wonderful successful daughters if there are concerns of profiling.

Please be careful if you drive your equipment next to roadways. They aren't paying attention if they are on the phone.

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