University of South Alabama student Jaimie Witcraft had been on her way to see her boyfriend on the weekend of July 4.
But as she sat in traffic on I-10 in Mobile, a semi truck barreled into her car. Witcraft, who was a nursing major and a member of the Air Force ROTC, had been on her phone with her mother at the time of the crash.
She was in one of five passenger vehicles involved in the crash and was one of 10 victims taken to the hospital afterwards.
Witnesses on the road said that they saw the semi truck driver swerving for several miles.
One woman, who had been traveling with her family, said that the driver appeared distracted, and his head was “bobbing up and down.” The truck driver also had a young boy traveling with him, and both were unharmed after the accident.
After the accident had occurred, more than 40 people had waited at the hospital where Witcraft had been taken to get an update on her condition. Unfortunately, the accident ended in tragedy.
Witcraft’s father, Joe, spoke to WKRG News about the accident, saying, “She had her whole life in front of her. She was taken away by that tractor truck driver. She didn’t even know it was coming.”
Just over half of all deaths in traffic accidents involve young adults between the ages of 15 and 44, which often leaves parents and family members wondering how to find a personal injury attorney while dealing with the tragic loss.
On the evening of Thursday, July 16, students, faculty and staff at the university held a candlelight vigil for the 22-year-old Texas native.
Faculty members organized the vigil for anyone who couldn’t attend Witcraft’s funeral in Texas.
Theresa Wright, a faculty member at the university, said that Witcraft was “deserving of our honor. She was a very good student.”
