Fatal accident and crash tileThe Tennessee Highway patrol has identified the driver of a tractor trailer truck involved in a fatal single-vehicle crash this morning in Rhea County.
The driver was Vern Delane Hunter, 70, of Claxton, Ga., according to THP spokeswoman Dalya Qualls.
Hunter was driving north up Grandview Mountain on state Highway 68 just before 7 this morning when he lost control of his truck and it went off the right side of the road,. Hunter overcorrected and lost control again. The truck ran off the road again went over a guardrail and overturned, according to a preliminary report filed by trooper Benjamin Harrison.
Hunter, who was not wearing a safety belt, was thrown from the truck and sustained head injures that killed him on impact, Harrison's report states. The truck came to rest about 50 feet off the road.
The northbound side of Highway 68 was shut down while authorities worked the accident scene.
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Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.comor twitter.com/BenBenton orwww.facebook.com/ben.benton1or 423-757-6569.