The Register-Herald, Beckley, West Virginia

July 21, 2008

38-year-old Coal City man dies in single-vehicle crash

By Michelle James

A single-vehicle accident on the West Virginia Turnpike claimed the life of a Coal City man Sunday night.

Larry Hickman, 38, was killed when his GMC Sonoma pickup truck went off the road just north of the Mabscott exit and overturned, West Virginia State Police Cpl. J.L. Folk said.

Hickman, who apparently was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to a witness report, Folk said, Hickman, who was in the southbound lane, had just passed a tractor-trailer and was attempting to move back into the right lane when he lost control of his vehicle and went off the right shoulder.

Folk said Hickman then crossed both southbound lanes of traffic, went off the road toward the median and then overcompensated again when attempting to bring the truck back onto the road, causing the vehicle to roll.

The accident remains under investigation.

— E-mail:

mjames@register-herald.com