A single-vehicle crash Saturday night on CR 5102 outside of Plum Grove claimed the life of a 41-year-old man and left another man in critical condition.
According to Sgt. Rob Willoughby, supervisor of the Texas DPS office in Liberty, the two men were traveling west on CR 5102 when their vehicle – a 2005 Nissan Frontier, left the roadway to the north and struck a culvert.
The passenger of the vehicle died at the scene. He was pronounced dead by Pct. 6 Justice of the Peace Ralph Fuller. The driver was transported to Kingwood Medical Center.
Willoughby said it appears the driver was traveling at a high rate of speed, which caused him to lose control and crash the vehicle.
Both men were wearing their seatbelts and were not ejected, he added.
Saturday night’s crash is the 13th DPS-investigated fatality accident in Liberty County this year, resulting in 16 deaths. This does not take into account the fatal crashes investigated by municipal police.
In July, Liberty Police Department investigated a “wrong-way driver” accident that claimed four lives, so the actual death toll for fatal accidents in Liberty County since the start of 2022 is much higher.
DPS is still working to determine the identity of the driver. Troopers have a possible identification on the passenger but are working to confirm it, and then notify the next of kin. Once their families have been apprised of the tragedy, Bluebonnet News will update this article.