Prater collides with truck
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The victim, Albert E. Prater, 21, was airlifted to Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga by LifeForce helicopter from the scene of the accident. He suffered severe leg and internal injuries in the crash.
According to deputy Ramsey Womack, the accident happened as Prater was trying to pass a westbound 1971 Chevy truck which was hauling a wood chipper. The truck was driven by Charles A. Fults, 41, who was on his way to a nearby job.
Fults’ wife, who was in another vehicle directly behind her husband, told officers Prater passed her on his motorcycle and then tried to pass her husband’s truck. However, as Prater was attempting the second pass, he ran into the front quarter panel of the Fults truck, which was turning left, across the oncoming lane, into a private driveway.
The impact ejected Prater, who was not wearing a helmet. The bike rolled approximately six times while Prater was thrown onto the grass just off the shoulder of the road.
The force of the impact left heavy damage to the front of the Fults truck. Womack said the fact Prater was thrown onto the grass and not the pavement likely saved his life since he was not wearing a helmet.
Womack pointed out Prater was attempting his pass in a no-passing zone. Womack noted the no-passing zone for westbound vehicles is there to prevent such an accident because all the driveways on that section of road are on the eastbound side, meaning those traveling westbound will always turn across the oncoming lane to access driveways exclusively on that side of the road. Passing is permitted for traffic traveling the opposition direction on that section of Short Mountain Road since there are no residences on the westbound side.
Charges are pending as Womack said Prater, while holding a regular driver’s license, did not have a motorcycle license.
The accident marked the second major motorcycle wreck in two days as another cyclist suffered severe leg injuries when he collided with a truck on Caldwell Street Saturday.