One man is dead, as of Tuesday morning, and a mother and two children are in critical condition following a one vehicle accident on State Highway 19 north of Sulphur Springs and just north of the White Oak Creek bridges, according to Justice of the Peace Brad Cummings. Cummings told KSST News that as the accident was investigated it was thought there would be four fatalities but the quick work of EMS and the short distance to the local hospital was a factor in saving lives. Tim Kelty, a hospital board member and resident of northern Hopkins County, stated that new equipment purchased recently for Hopkins County EMS also factored in the event.
A Tahoe with eight passengers traveling at approximately 70 miles per hour and pulling a small, homemade trailer went off the roadway and flipped several times ending top side down in three (3) feet of water in a creek, according to Cummnigs. Rescue efforts retrieved the 8 from the wreckage and it was thought that four, a man, his wife, and their two children were dead at the scene. However, Cummings said the four were revived by EMS and by hospital staff locally. The man and his wife were flown to Tyler, where the woman remains in critical condition and the man died Tuesday morning. The two children were transported to Children’s Medical Center, where they remain in critical condition.
The accident occurred between 4:30 and 5 p.m. Monday afternoon. The occupants of the vehicle are from the metroplex.
