A 67-year-old man was killed and three other people were seriously injured Friday afternoon after a three-car crash on GA 59 near Darrowby Lane in Franklin County, according to the Georgia State Patrol. Troopers said a northbound Honda SUV crossed into the southbound lane while negotiating a curve and struck a Toyota SUV head-on, setting off a chain-reaction collision that also involved a southbound truck.
Georgia State Patrol troopers responded to the scene at approximately 4:37 p.m., as reported by WYFF. Troopers said that after the initial head-on impact, both SUVs rotated, and a southbound truck then struck the driver’s side of the Toyota SUV. The Toyota driver was identified by GSP as 67-year-old Frankie William Roper, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
Multiple People Hospitalized With Serious Injuries
Two other occupants of the Toyota were transported for medical treatment for serious injuries, per the same report. The driver of the Honda SUV was also seriously injured and transported for treatment. The occupants of the truck involved in the final impact were uninjured, troopers said.
Charges against the Honda driver are pending, and she is suspected of being distracted by her cell phone at the time of the crash, according to GSP. Georgia State Patrol said no other information was available at the time.
A Pattern Seen Elsewhere in Franklin County
This is not the only Franklin County crash this year tied to a pending investigation into a driver's actions behind the wheel. In a separate crash in May, troopers were called around 10:50 a.m. to a two-vehicle wreck at the intersection of GA 17 and Old Highway 17, according to Fox Carolina. In that incident, troopers said the Honda driver stopped at a stop sign but failed to yield the right of way to an oncoming Ford, which struck the Honda in the intersection, leaving the driver seriously injured and charges pending.
Distraction a Factor in More Than Half of Georgia Crashes
Suspected distraction behind the wheel is a common thread in Georgia crash data. A Georgia traffic-safety report found that 55% of motor vehicle traffic crashes in the state in 2023 involved at least one confirmed or suspected distracted driver, according to gahighwaysafety.org. The same report found that 34% of all serious-injury crashes in the state involved at least one driver confirmed or suspected of distraction, and that 79% of distraction-related crashes involved at least one vehicle besides the distracted driver's own.
A 2024 roadside observational survey cited in the report found that 14.7% of drivers observed exhibited some form of visible distraction. The report also notes that distraction-related crashes are likely underreported, since confirming distraction as a contributing factor is challenging for law enforcement to establish. No additional details about the Franklin County crash, including specific charges, had been released as of Friday evening.
