January 11, 2016 - U.S. Highway 96 and U.S. Highway 59 outside of Tenaha were the scenes of two crashes which took place during inclement weather on Friday, January 8, 2016.
First responders were dispatched to a crash north of Tenaha on U.S. Highway 59 North where a vehicle was on its side in the median of the highway.
According to Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) State Trooper Taylor Buster, at 8:56pm a brown Ford Explorer driven by Anabel Stacks, 43, of Katy was traveling north on U.S. Highway 59 when she looked at her GPS. The Explorer traveled through the median into the southbound traffic lanes where Stacks over corrected to the right and flipped the Explorer onto the driver's side coming to rest facing south.
Stacks was traveling with 11-year-old female and 13-year-old male passengers. No injuries were reported as a result of the crash. A citation was issued for drive on wrong side of road divided highway.
Another crash occurring sometime before 10:15pm had emergency personnel spread out and searching until the vehicle was located. South of Flatfork Creek at the bridge after County Road 3774 was the scene of the crash. Upon arrival, no one was in the vehicle; however there was a child safety seat visible within and there was evidence someone had been injured.
According to Texas DPS Trooper Keith Jones, a tan Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck driven by Michael James Tolbert, 21, of Sarepta, LA. with passengers Victoria Lee Tolbert, 23, and a 1-year-old male passenger was traveling south on U.S. 96. As the truck approached the bridge, it began to hydroplane and left the roadway to the right through the barrow ditch. The truck was traveling backwards when it struck a tree on the driver's side bringing the truck to a stop facing the roadway.
The occupants of the vehicle walked to a nearby house in search of help and were located there by Texas DPS Trooper Taylor Buster and ACE EMS. The driver and passengers were treated for minor injuries at the scene. Tolbert was issued citations for unsafe speed and no driver's license.
Tenaha Deputy City Marshal Darren Gray assisted at both crash scenes.
