A vehicle fire following a collision involving an RV and an 18-wheeler prompted a large emergency response last Wednesday afternoon at the Lucky Stop truck stop on Hwy. 82 in Whitesboro.
At 12:42 p.m. on Oct. 21, Whitesboro first responders were dispatched to the scene, where an RV towing an unoccupied Jeep had collided with an 18-wheeler, resulting in a vehicle fire.
The family in the RV consisted of a 71-year-old man (who was driving the vehicle) and 67-year-old woman from Florida, and their 48-year-old daughter and 4-year-old granddaughter from Illinois. The 18-wheeler’s driver, a Whitesboro man, was its only occupant. When Whitesboro firefighters arrived, everyone had exited the vehicles, and no bystanders were involved.
The scene was classified as a mass casualty incident because the number of patients exceeded the available emergency response resources. Whitesboro Fire sounded a second alarm to bring additional emergency vehicles to the scene.
The response included four ambulances, two of which came from Cooke County. Sherman sent an engine and a medic unit, while Pilot Point dispatched a ladder truck and a medic unit. Fire engines from Southmayd and Collinsville also responded.
Due to the accident’s location, firefighters had to shuttle water to the scene to extinguish the fire.
The driver of the RV suffered severe burns to his lower body and was transported by helicopter to Parkland Hospital in Dallas.. Days later, he succumbed to his injuries.
The two adult women in the RV were transported by ambulance to TMC for respiratory issues resulting from the fire. The 4-year-old girl was uninjured and placed in the care of the Whitesboro Police Department, where she passed the time eating pizza and playing games until family members arrived to take custody of her. The 18-wheeler’s driver was also uninjured.
Traffic congestion caused by the highway closure led to a secondary accident on the opposite side of Hwy. 82. A patient from that collision was transported to TMC by a Pilot Point ambulance.
The affected section of Hwy. 82 remained closed until 5:15 p.m. The accident remains under investigation.
