A cow wandering a rural Tennessee highway set off a fatal chain-reaction accident between two trucks and an SUV.
On Tuesday night, at approximately 10:00 p.m., a 2013 Kenworth truck driven by 49-year-old Rodney Price struck a cow that was loose on Interstate 40 in Henderson County, near the 109 mile marker.
The collision with the cow caused Price to lose control of the truck. Price’s truck overturned in the median and slid into the westbound lanes, where it slammed into an oncoming SVU and truck, the Tennessee Highway Patrol press release stated.
Price and his passenger 45-year-old Brian Lederer died at the scene.
Two of the SUV’s occupants, 41-year-old Deborah Whitelow and 22-year-old Trarell Robinson, were also killed. The SUV’s third occupant, 22-year-old Avery Blue from Ripley, was injured. The extent of Blue’s injuries are unknown at this time.
Price’s truck also struck a truck driven by 61-year-old Marek Wisniewski. He was not injured.
The accident remains under investigation. Investigators are looking for the cow’s owner.