Posted on July 29, 2016
A married couple was traveling north along Louisiana Highway 25 one Friday evening. At the same time, another vehicle occupied only by its driver was heading in the opposite direction. As the southbound vehicle approached the couple’s vehicle, it crossed into the opposing lanes of traffic and slammed into their vehicle head-on. When authorities arrived at the scene of the car accident, only one person remained alive.
The 83-year-old man driving the northbound vehicle and the 82-year-old woman driving the southbound vehicle both suffered fatal injuries in the impact and were pronounced dead at the scene. The man’s wife, a passenger in the car, survived the crash but suffered injuries. She was transported to a nearby hospital by helicopter for treatment.
At last report, the woman passenger was considered to be in fair condition. Louisiana officials have not released any information regarding what caused the 82-year-old driver of the southbound vehicle to swerve into oncoming traffic, although impairment is not suspected to have played a role. Authorities continue to investigate the crash.
In addition to losing her husband, the woman may also be incurring significant financial losses associated with the death of her husband and her hospitalization. The surviving victim of this fatal car accident retains the right to file civil claims for her personal injury and the wrongful death of her husband. Establishing that her injuries and the death of her husband were due to the negligence of the other driver could result in an award of damages. Any monetary compensation she receives could help defray the financial impact of this deadly crash.
Source: nola.com, “Only survivor in Friday’s deadly crash north of Covington in ‘fair’ condition“, Emily Lane, Jan. 23, 2016