Separate accidents kill two
Separate accidents over the weekend resulted in the deaths of a local restaurant owner and another Hot Springs man.
Charles LeCompt, the owner of Chuck’s Barbecue on Airport Road, was killed in a multivehicle accident on Sunday afternoon in Louisiana, according to a news release from Louisiana State Police Troop F.
A family member told the newspaper Monday that LeCompt was headed to the Gulf Coast for a weeklong vacation.
The three- vehicle accident occurred on Highway 65 in East Carroll Parish at 2: 30 p. m. Sunday.
On Saturday evening, a Hot Springs man was killed and three people injured in a head- on collision on Highway 70 east near Kacey Lane in Saline County, according
to an Arkansas State Police report released Monday.
Shortly before 6 p. m., William H. Staton, 75, of Hot Springs, was driving a 2005 Toyota 4- Runner eastbound when a westbound 2006 Jeep, driven by Breanna R. Talbert, 25, of Conway, veered across the centerline and struck his vehicle, pushing it backward up onto the guard rail. Talbert’s vehicle reportedly overturned on its right side.
Staton, his wife, Mary V. Staton, 75, of Hot Springs, a minor female, age not listed, in his vehicle and Talbert were all injured and William Staton later died. The injured were taken to Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock and UAMS Saline Memorial in Benton.
According to a news release from the Louisiana State Police, a preliminary investigation shows that a 2014 Chevrolet Captiva driven by 49- yearold Sandra Edington, of Hot Springs, was stopped on the southbound shoulder of Highway 65 due to engine trouble. A 1985 BMW motorcycle, driven by 54- year- old King Trieschmann, of Lake Providence, had stopped in front of the Captiva to assist.
Trieschmann and Edington were standing in front of the Captiva when a southbound 2003 Ford F- 150, driven by 71- year- old Donald Smith, of Dumas, ran off the right side of the roadway and struck both parked vehicles.
Trieschmann and Edington sustained moderate injuries during the crash, but LeCompt, who was sitting inside the Captiva in the passenger seat at the time of the collision, sustained life- threatening injuries, the report said.
LeCompt, 64, was subsequently transported to River Region Medical Center in Vicksburg, Miss., by air and later died as a result of his injuries.
Alcohol is not suspected to be a factor in the crash, but toxicology samples were obtained and will be submitted for analysis. The crash remains under investigation and charges are pending, the report said.
Louisiana, like Arkansas, has a “move over” law, but its law applies not only to emergency vehicles, utility vehicles, tow trucks or other authorized vehicles, but stopped motorists. The Louisiana law requires motorists to merge to the left lane when they encounter a stopped motorist on the roadside.
“Troopers aggressively enforce this law to avoid these types of tragic crashes,” the release said.