KHN – According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, a 16-year-old girl from Ocala, Florida, died as a result of injuries experienced in a single-vehicle rollover incident on Interstate 40, five miles east of Vega, on Tuesday evening.
According to DPS officials, the crash occurred around 5:15 p.m. when a 2007 Chevrolet Silverado carrying a travel trailer driving east on I-40 in Oldham County exited the roadway for an unexplained reason.
The driver, David Flowers, 37, also of Ocala, attempted to adjust the vehicle’s direction but lost control, leading the pickup and trailer to skid across the eastbound lanes into the center median and flip over.
During the incident, the pickup and travel trailer separated. The young passenger, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected from the car. She was transported to Amarillo Northwest Texas Hospital with significant injuries and later died.
Flowers, who was wearing a seatbelt, suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was treated and released from the Amarillo Hospital.
The posted speed limit in the area is 75 mph. According to investigators, the roads were dry at the time of the incident, despite the overcast weather.
The Texas Highway Patrol is continuing its investigation.
Reference: Florida teen dies after rollover crash on I-40 in Oldham County