Fatalities keeping DPS busy
By JIMMY GALVAN

It may be the holiday season, but Texas Department of Public Safety troopers have been quite busy as they have dealt with four fatality accidents in the past week.

Two separate accidents claimed the lives of two Jasper County residents this past week.

“We have had four fatality accidents in the last nine days,” said DPS Trooper Curtis Bennett.

Bennett said the amount of accidents normally picks up during this time of year because of the high volume of traffic on the roadways.

“We have had an extremely busy year,” Bennett said. “I know we have worked more accidents this year than last year.”

The latest fatality occurred Wednesday, Dec. 27 when a single-vehicle accident claimed the life of Jonathan Lewis Vann, 25, of the Erin community near Jasper.

“The driver was southbound on U.S. Highway 96 and for whatever reason he drifted left and overcorrected right which caused him to leave the road,” said Bennett, who investigated the accident.

Bennett said Vann’s vehicle struck a pile of rocks, which sent his vehicle airborne.

“Sometime during the airborne process or on final impact, the victim was ejected from the vehicle,” Bennett said.

He noted that the time of the accident is still in question. The accident was not spotted until near 7 a.m. but DPS accident investigators believe the accident occurred between 2 and 2:30 a.m.

Vann was not wearing a seatbelt.

On Dec. 24, a three-vehicle accident near Kirbyville claimed the life of a Jasper woman.

According to DPS accident reports, the Pendino family was traveling southbound on U.S. Highway 96 when it allegedly hydroplaned into the northbound lane of traffic.

Avehicle being driven by Trudy Carlin, 59 of Jasper, struck their vehicle.

Amanda Diane Pendino, 31, of Jasper, was pronounced dead at the scene while Thomas Don Pendino, 32, Jeremy Pendino, 2; Josh Pendino, 7; and Jace Pendino, 9 were all transported to Christus St. Elizabeth’s in Beaumont and later released. Carlin was transported to Christus Jasper Memorial.

The driver of the 2002 GMC Yukon, Elissa Smith, of Orange, was not injured in the crash.

According to DPS accident reports, the case is still under investigation to determine an exact cause of the accident.

DPS troopers also worked a fatality accident on U.S. Highway 87 Dec. 15 which resulted in the death of Mary Lynch Powell, 73, of Call.

Accident reports indicate Powell pulled onto the highway from FM 3154 and was struck by a southbound tractor trailer truck being driven by Cecil Marvin Watson of Houston.