A woman with Marion County ties was among five people who died on the state’s roadways during the extended Thanksgiving holiday, according to the Mississippi Highway Patrol.
Judy A. Pounds of Moss Point, formerly of Foxworth, died Sunday in a single-vehicle crash in Stone County. According to the MHP, the crash occurred on Mississippi 26 around 2:15 p.m. when Pounds’ 2002 Chevrolet was traveling westbound and left the roadway, rolling several times. Pounds was thrown from the vehicle. She was transported to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead. Arrangements were pending at the Colonial Funeral Home in Columbia as of deadline Tuesday.
Capt. Johnny Poulos of the Mississippi Highway Patrol’s Public Affairs Division said the extended weekend was a busy one for troopers across the state. The enforcement period began last Wednesday at 6 p.m. and ended Sunday at Midnight.
“The MHP issued 4,879 citations with 46 DUI arrests statewide,” he said. “MHP investigated 163 motor vehicle accidents which included 55 injuries and five fatalities on state, federal highways and interstates. MHP observed heavy traffic throughout the period and anticipates the number of motorists traveling to increase during the upcoming December holiday period.”
Locally, for MHP Troop J, whose enforcement area includes Marion County, troopers issued a total of 693 citations during the enforcement period. Of these, 465 were hazard citations, 216 non-hazard and six DUI arrests. Troopers in the area also issued five child restraint citations.
In the Troop J enforcement area, troopers also responded to 19 crashes that had three injuries. Three of the crashes were alcohol related. Statewide, nine of the accidents were alcohol related.
The first fatality of the enforcement period occurred on Friday at around 4:20 a.m. on U.S. 61 in Wilkinson County. The MHP responded to a crash involving a pedestrian. Dondi D. Dixon, 31, of Woodville was reported to have been walking in the northbound lane and was struck by a vehicle traveling northbound. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Later Friday around 5:10 p.m., the MHP responded to a fatal crash involving one vehicle in Leflore County. A 2003 Ford passenger van driven by Doris Greer, 47, of Greenwood, was traveling westbound on U.S. 82. The vehicle left the roadway and entered the median, rolling several times. A passenger in the vehicle, Dennis Miller, 53, of Greenwood, died from injuries suffered in the crash. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Saturday night in Benton County, the MHP responded to another fatal crash. The two-vehicle accident occurred around 10:20 p.m. on Mississippi 5. A 2014 Chevrolet passenger car driven by Tavieon D. Johnson, 20, of Michigan City, was traveling eastbound. A 2006 Ford Mustang driven by Marquez Amaya, 25, of Memphis, Tenn., was traveling eastbound in the westbound lane and collided with the Chevrolet passenger car. Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene and Amaya was transported to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries.
The other fatal crash to occur on a Mississippi highway occurred Sunday at around 12:50 p.m. in Lincoln County. A 2004 Ford pickup truck, driven by James E. Hutson, 91, of Bogue Chitto, was traveling southbound on I-55. Left rear tire failure caused the driver to lose control of the vehicle, which left the roadway and overturned several times. Hutson was pronounced dead at the scene.
Poulos said all of the crashes remain under investigation by the Mississippi Highway Patrol.
