(Newswire.net — November 25, 2018) — A Nashville motorist was killed on November 20th when someone threw a chunk of concrete off of a bridge spanning Interstate 24 near downtown Nashville. The driver, Joe C. Shelton, Jr., lost control of his Nissan GT-R when the concrete came through his windshield and sideswiped both a Toyota pickup truck and a guardrail. Shelton was on his way to work in Smyrna at the Nissan plant when the concrete was thrown just before 5 a.m. The victim may have been killed instantly when the concrete hit him directly in the face. The driver of the Toyota truck was not injured.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation does not believe the chunk of concrete came from the bridge itself but rather think it was a piece of roadway curb. Local police say the concrete was thrown from the Shelby Avenue Bridge. The vehicles involved in the ensuing accident came to rest on the Silliman Evans Bridge. Police currently have no description of the person who caused Shelton’s death and are appealing to the public for any witnesses to come forward. Surveillance video from the area of the Shelby Avenue Bridge is also under review to determine who could have perpetrated this crime.
Portions of I-24 were closed during the aftermath of the accident, including all eastbound lanes. These lanes remained closed for about 5 hours during the accident investigation and while the wreckage was cleared from the scene of the homicide. Witnesses who could have been driving near the scene are urged to contact Nashville Crime Stoppers and may qualify for a cash reward if the information they share leads to an arrest in this case.
This isn’t the first time a tragic accident has occurred because of objects thrown off a bridge. In August, a large rock was hurled from a bridge in Fort Worth, Texas along Interstate 30. That motorists fast reflexes made the difference between life and death in that case. The rock fell through her sunroof rather than her windshield due to her evasive measures after spotting the man on the bridge who threw the rock.
Tragic thrown object accidents have occurred overseas as well. In Britain, a large snowball thrown from a bridge damage several vehicles, leaving the authorities to say that “it is only through good luck that no one was seriously hurt or worse.” Motorists must stay as alert as possible while driving to avoid the reckless actions of others and then turn to qualified car accident experts like David Boehrer Law Firm if necessary after an incident occurs.