The Tennessee Highway Patrol and Benton police are continuing to investigate a fatal wreck overnight in Benton, Tenn., that claimed the life of a local man, according to police.
Benton Police Chief Rocky King said the accident involved a pickup truck and a tractor trailer rig and happened about 11:10 p.m. Monday near Benton Shooters Supply on U.S. Highway 411 in the construction zone.
Benton resident Sammy Cross was the driver of the pick up truck and was killed in the accident, King said. The driver of the tractor trailer sustained no serious injuries, the chief said.
King said Cross was driving a Ford Ranger pickup truck southbound on Highway 411 when he lost control and slid off the road, striking some construction barrels before coming back onto the highway and entering the oncoming lane.
Cross’s truck hit the northbound big rig head-on, the chief said.
Dispatchers said the wreck was cleared overnight and poses no traffic problems today.
Ben Benton is a news reporter at the Chattanooga Times Free Press. He covers Southeast Tennessee and previously covered North Georgia education. Ben has worked at the Times Free Press since November 2005, first covering Bledsoe and Sequatchie counties and later adding Marion, Grundy and other counties in the northern and western edges of the region to his coverage. He was born and raised in Cleveland, Tenn., a graduate of Bradley Central High School. Benton ...
