Preventable Tragedies
Couple who got lost on their drive home from a Thanksgiving gathering believed to have frozen to death
PANHANDLE, Texas (KFDA/Gray News) — A couple from Texas disappeared on their way home from celebrating Thanksgiving with their family. Five days later, they were both found dead next to their vehicle, far from their intended destination. Linda and Gary Lightfoot, ages 81 and 82, went missing Thanksgiving Day after spending time with family in Panhandle, Texas. After leaving their family gathering, they failed to make it back to their home in Lubbock, Texas, more than a two-hour drive south.
Read MorePolice: Disabled Vehicle Struck by Driver on Interstate 80
RICHLAND TWP., Pa. (EYT) — Pennsylvania State Police in Clarion recently responded to a two-vehicle crash on Interstate 80 westbound in Richland Township, Clarion County. According to state police, the crash occurred on December 16 at approximately 8:40 p.m. near mile marker 49. Troopers said a 2020 Kenworth was stopped and disabled along the right shoulder of the highway when it was struck by a 2025 Freightliner operated by Milan Jovanovic, 30, of New York, New York, which was traveling westbound in the right-hand lane.
Read MoreTeenage Good Samaritan hospitalized after Christmas Eve crash while helping stranded driver
DEARBORN HEIGHTS, Mich. (WXYZ) — A 16-year-old boy remains in intensive care at Corewell Health Hospital in Dearborn after being struck by a vehicle while helping a stranded motorist on Christmas Eve in Dearborn Heights. Alexander Johnson was picking up eggs for his grandmother around 5:30 p.m. when he stopped to help jumpstart another driver’s car at the Van Born and John Daly intersection. Police say Johnson was connecting cables to the disabled vehicle when a suspect driver rear-ended them, pinning the teenager between his car and the vehicle he was helping.
Read MoreTruck driver charged in deadly Virginia crash immigrated to US illegally: sources
ROANOKE COUNTY, Va. (TNND) — A tractor-trailer driver charged with reckless driving after three people were killed in Virginia reportedly illegally immigrated to the U.S. from Africa in the nineties, federal law enforcement told Fox News. El Hadji Karamoko Ouattara, 58, was driving on Dec. 22 when his tractor-trailer hit a vehicle that pulled off Interstate 81 in Roanoke County, according to Virginia State Police. Police said the vehicle ran off the right side of the road and hit a 2025 Honda Odyssey stopped on the right shoulder.
Read MoreMan, 21, Was Last Heard from on Christmas Eve. Days Later, His Body Was Found in Submerged Vehicle
A missing 21-year-old man was found dead after he crashed into a deep canal in California just before his family celebrated Christmas. The nightmare began between Wednesday, Dec. 24, and Thursday, Dec. 25, when family members reported a 21-year-old man missing, the California Highway Patrol said in a news release shared with PEOPLE. The man was later identified as Carlos Mendoza of Fresno, officials confirmed. With the help of phone location data, loved ones began their own search for the young man near the intersection of Herndon and Madsen avenues in Fresno County.
Read MoreN.Y. EMTs struck while assisting disabled motorist
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Two first responders were injured hospitalized Friday evening while helping a disabled motorist on the I-290 near Niagara Falls Boulevard. The EMTs from a Twin City Ambulance crew were helping the driver who skidded off the expressway around 9 p.m. Friday when another driver lost control of their car and crashed into the scene. One EMT was hit and pinned by the vehicles, while the other EMT was inside a car that was hit, according to Terence Clark, president of Twin City Ambulance.
Read MoreNew Stanton, PA – Tractor-Trailer Crash Shuts Down EB Near Allegheny Tunnel
New Stanton, PA (December 29, 2025) – Traffic on the eastbound Pennsylvania Turnpike was severely disrupted on Monday, December 29, following a crash involving multiple commercial vehicles near the Allegheny Tunnel, according to Pennsylvania State Police. The incident occurred shortly before 6:00 a.m. near mile marker 129, between the Somerset and Bedford interchanges. State police reported that the initial crash involved a commercial vehicle that rolled onto its side while traveling eastbound.
Read MorePolice investigate multiple crashes involving 50+ vehicles on I-75
(WXYZ) — High winds and snow squalls are causing issues on the roads across metro Detroit on Monday. Northbound I-75 after McNichols in Wayne County was closed for several hours after a multi-vehicle crash occurred shortly before noon. It reopened shortly after 4 p.m. Michigan State Police say responding troopers determined there were 25 separate crashes involving 59 passenger cars and semi trucks. That total does not include cars that left the scene without a crash report being filed.
Read MoreISP: Semitruck strikes traffic control vehicle, spills cargo on roadway
POCATELLO, Idaho — The Idaho State Police (ISP) is investigating an early morning crash near Pocatello that has halted traffic on Interstate 15. According to ISP, around 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 10, a semitruck with a trailer hit a “stationary traffic control vehicle” that was equipped with a crash attenuator. ISP reports the crash ripped open the trailer’s wall, leading to cargo being spilled along I-15. The crash also heavily damaged the stationary vehicle.
Read MoreMan stopped on side of I-295 near Pulaski Road dies after SUV collision
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man died in a crash on Interstate 295 at Pulaski Road, causing traffic backups on Wednesday afternoon, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. According to the FHP report, the 38-year-old man driving a box truck on north I-295 stopped on the side of the road for unknown reasons. When he exited the truck, a 65-year-old driver of a sports utility vehicle in the left lane veered from the travel lane onto the shoulder and hit the man.
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