RUSK COUNTY, Texas — A Henderson man died Friday afternoon after his vehicle struck the load of a tractor trailer that was making a U-turn in Rusk County.
The driver of a 2014 Western Star Truck Tractor, towing a trailer, was traveling southwest on US Highway 79 and James Pinkerton, 74, was moving the same direction behind the tractor trailer. The tractor made a U-turn with part of the load still in the southwest lanes of US 79, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Pinkerton struck the load, causing him to travel off the roadway and strike a culvert, DPS said. He was pronounced dead at the scene and his passenger, Charles Hebert, 79, of Alvin, was taken to a local hospital for his injuries.
The driver of the tractor trailer was not injured. The crash remains under the investigation, DPS said.