Justin Trimble.A Chattanooga family is dealing with a two-fold tragedy this week after a pair of traffic crashes, connected in a gut-wrenching way, claimed the lives of two men.
Justin Trimble's body was found Monday night near the Wilcox Boulevard tunnel. Just hours later, police confirmed Tuesday morning that Derrick Bush was killed in a crash, as well.
Bush, a relative of Trimble, had been seriously injured in a car wreck last week while helping in the search for Trimble after Trimble disappeared on a motorcycle May 30.
Family members could not be reached for comment, but many expressed their grief through social media Tuesday as the long search for Trimble ended and Bush died from his injuries.
"My Cuzin Derrick Bush sacrifice his life lookin for his Cuzin ," Terrell Bush wrote on his Facebook page. "R.I.P JUSTIN n Derrick."
Trimble, 33, was last seen leaving a friend's house riding a black 2007 Kawasaki motorcycle. His family organized searches for him and offered cash rewards for information about the husband and father in the days after his disappearance.
Bush, 34, was reportedly among those searching for Trimble on Saturday when police said he lost control of his vehicle while on Shallowford Road near the Moore Road intersection.
He was struck by a vehicle operated by a 63-year-old woman. The woman was not injured, according to police, but Bush was taken to a hospital in an ambulance with life-threatening injuries.
Still, the search continued for Trimble. Family members held a candlelight vigil Saturday night at Tacoa Park as there was still no sign of Trimble or his motorcycle.
Finally, on Monday evening, police were called to 2500 Wilcox Boulevard about a body found. They located Trimble's body underneath a motorcycle in the woods to the west of the tunnel.
Police said in a news release that an on-scene investigation showed the motorcycle was traveling west through the tunnel, noting that the road curves left after the tunnel.
"It appeared that the driver/rider did not negotiate the turn and went over a curb and into the woods," the release said.
Police spokesman Kyle Miller said in a separate email Tuesday that, "At this time, there is no sign or indication of foul play."
Then, just over seven hours after confirming that the body was Trimble's, police issued a release saying investigators had been notified by the Hamilton County Medical Examiner's Office that Bush had died as well.
"Derrick held on until they found Justin," @say_cheez82 posted on Twitter. "[And] then he went to be with him on the other side."
Contact staff writer David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6249.