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Three-vehicle crash east of Lake Wales kills truck driver and injures three.

The accident happened at 7 a.m. on Saturday near the intersection of State Road 60 East and County Road 630 North. Travelling west on S.R. 60 were a semi tractor-trailer driven by 47 –year-old Steven Vance Gatlin, of Lakeland, and a minivan with 50-year-old James Alfonso Huggins, also of Lakeland, behind the wheel.

According to a report by NewsChief.com the semi-truck, for unknown reasons, started steering away from its lane and entered the eastbound lane into the path of an oncoming pick-up truck driven by David Theodore Alban, 43 years old, from Loxahatchee.

The semi-truck hit the left side of the pickup, causing it to rotate counterclockwise. The semi-truck rotated clockwise, jack-knifed and ended up overturning on the south shoulder.

In the meantime, the pickup entered the westbound lane of S.R. 60, collided with the minivan and started rotating clockwise, leaving the highway on the south shoulder, where it overturned.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol the semi-truck driver, Gatlin, was pronounced dead at the scene. The pickup driver, Alban, suffered minor injuries while the driver of the minivan and his passenger, Catherine D. Huggins, also of Lakeland, were both taken to Lake Wales Medical Center to treat their injuries.

We offer our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of the deceased Steven Vance Gatlin and hope that the injured victims of this terrible accident will soon recover.

As this accident is still under investigation, it is not possible to comment on its cause. We only lament its devastating effects, and will keep on informing our readers about the dangers on Florida’s highways and the safety precautions all should heed.

If you or a loved one has been involved and hurt in a car or motorcycle crash caused by someone else, call immediately the Ormond Beach auto accident attorneys of Johnson & Gilbert for a FREE discussion of your case.

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