Fatal Crashes Claim 3 Lives

Two separate vehicle accidents that occurred minutes apart on Friday night took the lives of 3 locals and left 2 other victims in serious condition.

Around 12:30 am, on March 9, Toombs County deputies responded to a wreck on GA Hwy 56 West at the intersection of Currie Road in the unincorporated area of the county. Upon arrival, deputies found a black Dodge Ram pickup truck that had left the roadway and crashed. The victim, 49-year-old “Jimmy” Ezra Taylor of Uvalda, had been ejected from the vehicle and was found unresponsive some continued from page

distance from the vehicle. Deputies believe Taylor was traveling west on GA Hwy 56 when his vehicle crossed the eastbound lane, left the roadway, and wrecked.

Deputies on the scene performed CPR until Toombs- Montgomery EMS arrived and determined that Taylor was deceased as a result of his injuries.

Sixteen minutes after receiving the call about the crash on Hwy 56, at approximately 12:46 a.m., Toombs County 911 dispatch received another call about an accident on GA Hwy 130 West (Adams Street) at its intersection with Kingswood Drive. Upon arrival, deputies found a Dodge Charger R/T that had left the roadway and crashed. Four teenagers were occupants of the vehicle. including Lauren Wilcher, 18, of Uvalda; Brooke Williamson, 18, of Oak Park; Caleb Howell, 19, of Odum; and Kyle Jackson, 19, of Vidalia. Deputies indicated that the vehicle carrying the teens was traveling west on GA 130 when it left the road and struck a pine tree.

Williamson and Jackson succumbed to their injuries at the scene. Howell was ejected from the vehicle and Wilcher was found in the vehicle. Both Howell and Wilcher were transported to Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah with life threatening injuries.

Both accident investigations were turned over to the Georgia State Patrol Post 18 in Reidsville for further investigation.