| 116th Year, 30th Issue | Thursday, March 3, 2005 | Sparta, North Carolina |
Three companies and three individuals were named as defendants in a wrongful death suit filed Feb. 22 by Thomas Billings, administrator of the estate of the late Susan Billings.
The lawsuit, which is dated Feb. 17, stems from the death of Billings, a Glade Valley resident, in an automobile accident in Wilkes County on Nov. 22, 2004.
Named as defendants in the suit are Terminal Trucking Company Inc., Triple B Leasing Inc., PACECO Inc., Joseph Clarence Yancey III, Charles Eugene Isenhour Jr. and Mary B. Isenhour. The Isenhours are the owners of the three businesses named in the suit and are residents of Concord, while Yancey, a resident of Spindale, was driving the tractor trailer that crashed into Billings’ Chevrolet Blazer, leading to her death in the fiery aftermath of the wreck.
Yancey was later charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle and driving left of center, according to a warrant filed by Trooper R.L. Hall of the North Carolina Highway Patrol.
The Accident
According to the suit, Billings and her mother, Sarah Jane McCarthy, were traveling northbound on U.S. 21 headed toward Roaring Gap and were not far from the Alleghany County line. Meanwhile, Yancey was traveling southbound from Roaring Gap in a tractor trailer fully loaded with cotton bales.
“He (Yancey) ignored warning signs of the steep grade ahead and cautioning truck drivers to use their trucks’ lower gears,” the document said. “Instead, he barreled down the mountain, traveling at a speed much too fast. Just before the collision, contrary to specific instructions on cautionary signs, he was operating his fully loaded tractor trailer truck in one of the truck’s highest gears. He was going too fast as he tried to follow a curve around to the right, which caused the tractor and trailer to lean left.”
Meanwhile, Billings was coming from the opposite direction and saw the
oncoming truck leaning toward her side of the road. To avoid the truck,
she then steered her 1997 Blazer off the road to the right as far as
the terrain allowed.
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