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Man walks away from wreck and dies
Two serious wrecks back-to-back Thursday morning
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Matthew Stribling was injured when a vehicle crossed the center-line and struck his DTC utility truck head on Thursday morning. - photo by Angie Meadows

A man’s death is under investigation by the TBI after he walked away from a crash on Sparta Highway Thursday morning only to die a short time later in neighboring White County in what was the first of two major wrecks Thursday.

The fatally injured victim, described only as a 25-year-old Morrison man (Warren County) pending the completion of the probe being conducted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, was able to actually walk away from the scene of the Thursday morning crash while the driver remained at the scene, critically injured.

According to Trooper Johnson, the victim was a passenger in a 2003 Tahoe drive by Lakean Woods, 27, of Rock Island which left the highway and struck a rock embankment on the Sparta side of Sligo on Sparta Highway. The SUV then came to rest on its side in the highway. The driver was ejected during the crash. She was later airlifted to Skyline Medical Center in Nashville. Meanwhile, her passenger walked away from the scene of the wreck but was picked up in White County. He later passed away from his injuries. The complete circumstances of his death are being investigated by the TBI.

The fatality happened just before another serious wreck Thursday, this one on the four lane in front of DeKalb High School.

Among the injured in the second wreck was Lynda Neville, 42. She was airlifted from the DeKalb Middle School parking lot and flown to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for treatment. The driver of the other vehicle, Matthew Stribling, 33, was treated for non-life-threatening injuries at St. Thomas DeKalb Hospital.

According to Trooper Bobby Johnson, of the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Neville was traveling east in her 2000 Buick Regal when she crossed into the westbound lane and struck an oncoming 2011 Ford F250 DTC Communications truck driven by Strilbing.

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Lynda Neville was airlifted from the scene after her vehicle crashed head-on into a utility truck Thursday morning. - photo by Angie Meadows

The impact left Neville pinned inside the wreckage. She was extricated from her car by members of the Smithville Fire Department and prepped for her flight to Nashville.

The high school wreck happened shortly after a crash on Sparta Highway Thursday morning, with Trooper Johnson investigating both.