The Georgia State Patrol said charges are pending against a Dougherty County police officer regarding an accident Tuesday morning on Interstate 16 near Metter that took the life of a Savannah man and severely injured another.
A two-mile eastbound stretch of the interstate was closed for about six hours while members of the Georgia State Patrol Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team investigated the accident, said GSP Cpl. Robert Balkcom.
Around 9:38 a.m., Dougherty County Police officer Jeremiah Fenn, 25, Albany, was driving eastbound on Interstate 16 just east of Metter when he struck an SUV traveling in the same direction in the same lane, Balkcom said.
As the accident remains under investigation, Balkcom could not release reasons why Fenn may have struck the vehicle traveling in front of him. The impact occurred while both vehicles were in motion, he said.
Balkcom said charges are pending in the accident.
"(Fenn) struck the SUV in the rear end," Balkcom said.
Upon being struck in the rear by Fenn's vehicle, the SUV, driven by William Wilcox, 57, Athens, overturned several times, ejecting Wilcox's son, Milton Wilcox, 33, Savannah, he said.
Milton Wilcox, who was not wearing a seat belt, was pronounced dead at the scene, he said. William Wilcox suffered serious injuries and was airlifted by Life Star helicopter to Savannah's Memorial Health University Medical Center, Balkcom said.
Fenn was not injured, and was later taken back to Albany by the Dougherty County police chief, he said.
Fenn was en route to Savannah to participate in an exercise conducted by the Savannah-Chatham County Police in conjunction with a grant Chatham received to reduce fatalities and improve traffic safety, Balkcom said. There have been 15 fatalities in that agency's jurisdiction this year.
Wilcox's death was 2007's twelfth traffic fatality in the GSP Post 45 jurisdiction, which covers Bulloch, Candler and Evans counties.
Interstate 16 was closed most of the day Tuesday and reopened for traffic around 3:45 p.m., Balkcom said. The Department of Transportation and Bulloch County Sheriff's Department, as well as Georgia State Patrol troopers, assisted with rerouting traffic while investigators worked the accident.
A two-mile eastbound stretch of the interstate was closed for about six hours while members of the Georgia State Patrol Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team investigated the accident, said GSP Cpl. Robert Balkcom.
Around 9:38 a.m., Dougherty County Police officer Jeremiah Fenn, 25, Albany, was driving eastbound on Interstate 16 just east of Metter when he struck an SUV traveling in the same direction in the same lane, Balkcom said.
As the accident remains under investigation, Balkcom could not release reasons why Fenn may have struck the vehicle traveling in front of him. The impact occurred while both vehicles were in motion, he said.
Balkcom said charges are pending in the accident.
"(Fenn) struck the SUV in the rear end," Balkcom said.
Upon being struck in the rear by Fenn's vehicle, the SUV, driven by William Wilcox, 57, Athens, overturned several times, ejecting Wilcox's son, Milton Wilcox, 33, Savannah, he said.
Milton Wilcox, who was not wearing a seat belt, was pronounced dead at the scene, he said. William Wilcox suffered serious injuries and was airlifted by Life Star helicopter to Savannah's Memorial Health University Medical Center, Balkcom said.
Fenn was not injured, and was later taken back to Albany by the Dougherty County police chief, he said.
Fenn was en route to Savannah to participate in an exercise conducted by the Savannah-Chatham County Police in conjunction with a grant Chatham received to reduce fatalities and improve traffic safety, Balkcom said. There have been 15 fatalities in that agency's jurisdiction this year.
Wilcox's death was 2007's twelfth traffic fatality in the GSP Post 45 jurisdiction, which covers Bulloch, Candler and Evans counties.
Interstate 16 was closed most of the day Tuesday and reopened for traffic around 3:45 p.m., Balkcom said. The Department of Transportation and Bulloch County Sheriff's Department, as well as Georgia State Patrol troopers, assisted with rerouting traffic while investigators worked the accident.