Furniture Truck
Slams Cadillac
On Industrial Rd.
BY KEN LITTLE
STAFF WRITER
Two people were injured in a violent crash between a box-style truck and a car about 2:55 p.m. Wednesday on Industrial Road at Tateho Drive and Poor Farm Road.
Greeneville police Officer Billy Christy said the driver of the Factory Direct Furniture Isuzu truck was attempting a left-hand turn from Industrial Road onto Poor Farm Road, across from the UCM Zirconia plant.
The truck turned into the path of a Cadillac driven by Allen Guinn, 26, of Oakland Park in Greeneville.
The driver of the truck, 38-year-old Timothy Browning, of Kingsport, was flown by Wings Air Rescue to Johnson City Medical Center.
Browning was listed in stable condition this morning, a hospital spokeswoman said.
The truck passenger, Nicholas Rogelio, 34, of Ocean Blvd., Greeneville, was taken to Laughlin Memorial Hospital by Greene County-Greeneville Emergency Medical Services. He was treated and later released, a hospital spokesman said.
'A LITTLE DAZED'
Guinn stood near his demolished 1995 Cadillac as officers and firefighters worked to clear the wreck scene Wednesday afternoon.
"I'm all right -- a little dazed," Guinn said. "I was coming up through here. They were coming down [Industrial Road], and they turned right in front of me."
Guinn said he was stunned by the force of the violent collision between his car and the truck.
"I just got out and laid there on the ground. I was dazed at the time," he said. "I'm fine now."
Guinn said he had no idea why the driver pulled in front of him.
"I thought he was going to wait, but he didn't," Guinn said.
Browning and Rogelio were trapped in the truck after the crash. Greeneville firefighters and members of the Greeneville Emergency & Rescue Squad had to cut off the roof of the cab to free the men.
"The Cadillac was destroyed. If someone had been in the passenger seat, they would have been injured severely," Greeneville fire Capt. Bill Teague said.
FAILURE TO YIELD
Greeneville police continue an investigation into the crash. No citations have been issued, but Officer Billy Christy said contributing factors on the part of Browning included failure to exercise due care, failure to yield the right of way, and making an improper turn onto Poor Farm Road.
"That roadway was marked for no trucks," Christy said.
"I don't think speed was a factor. The truck pulling out in front of [Guinn] was what caused it," he said Thursday at the wreck scene.
Traffic on Industrial Road was blocked for about one hour after the crash.
