For the fourth time in less than two weeks, an automobile accident claimed the life of a Grenada County resident.
According to Grenada Police Department Chief George Douglas, 24-year-old Charles Matthew Downs died from injuries sustained after the Ford pickup truck he was traveling in left the roadway and struck a grouping of several trees on Highway 332 in front of Harrell’s Metal Works early last Friday morning. The driver of the truck, Timothy James Lee Radcliff, 23, was injured in the one-vehicle accident. An update on his condition was not available.
Early Friday morning, the Grenada County Civil Defense/E911 Office issued a warning to motorists that black ice had been reported following below-freezing temperatures. Douglas could not confirm if ice on the roadway contributed to the accident, but did confirm that icy roadways had been reported Friday morning.
Officers with the Grenada Police Department and rescue personnel with the Grenada Fire Department reported to the scene, along with MedStat Emergency Medical Services.
The string of deadly accidents began on Sunday, Jan. 22, when Inez Hallmon, 68, of Carroll County died from injuries sustained in a multi-vehicle accident at the intersection of highways 8 and 51 near the Sunset Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership.
Three days later on Wednesday, Jan. 25, first responders were dispatched to a traffic accident near the intersection of Highway 8 and Vance Road in front of High on the Hog BBQ just after 5 p.m. involving a Ford Explorer Sports Trac and an 18-wheeler hauling a full load of logs.
The driver of the pickup truck, 77-year-old Willie Alex Rushing of Gore Springs, died at the scene before being transported to the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Grenada. One of Rushing’s passengers, Troy Harris Winters, 47, of Big Creek was transported to UMMC-Grenada by MedStat where he was later airlifted to UMMC-Jackson. Grenada County Coroner Douglas “Little Bobby” Yates confirmed that Winters died on Friday, Jan. 27.
The condition of a third occupant, who Chief Douglas or Yates has not been able to officially identify, is unknown.
The driver of the 18-wheeler, who has not been identified, was not injured in the accident.
All three accidents remain under investigation.
