Man Dies After Crashing Govt. Vehicle in Fiery Accident in Tucker County

November 16, 2010 - Tucker County, W.Va. - One man died Monday morning when the government owned vehicle he was driving crashed and caught fire in Tucker County.

WDTV reports that the accident happened at around 6 a.m. Monday on Blackwater Falls Road/SSR 29 in Tucker County. Robert Dement, 68, was driving a 1997 Dodge Caravan westbound on the roadway when he apparently lost control of the vehicle.

The Dodge then went off the road and into a ditch, where the vehicle caught fire. Dement was unable to free himself from the wreckage. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

According to West Virginia State Police, Dement was a security guard. He was driving a vehicle owned by the Division of Natural Resources Parks Division at the time of the fatal accident.

To assist State Police, officials from the Tucker County Sheriff's Department, Thomas and Davis Volunteer Fire Departments, Tucker County EMS, and the West Virginia State Fire Marshall's Office were on the scene.

The fatal accident remains under investigation by State Police.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's 2009 West Virginia Crash Statistics show that there were 356 fatalities as a result of car accidents in West Virginia.

In an effort to raise awareness of common factors in serious and fatal car accidents in West Virginia, our firm routinely publishes news items about traffic crashes in our region.

Common West Virginia accidents include, but are not limited to:

• single-car crashes;
• tractor-trailer accidents;
• accidents caused by hazardous road conditions; and
• distracted driver crashes.

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