Police say distracted driver caused wreck

Published 10:34 pm Thursday, September 1, 2011

Suffolk police say this five-vehicle accident on U.S. Route 58 westbound on Monday was caused by a tractor-trailer driver reaching for a ringing cell phone.

A Courtland man has a pending reckless driving citation after police say he was distracted by a ringing cell phone and caused a five-vehicle accident on U.S. Route 58 in Suffolk Monday.

Dennis Wayne Butler, 55, was driving a truck owned by Butler Trucking LLC westbound on Route 58 about 12:15 p.m. when he allegedly failed to come to a stop at a red light at the intersection of Holland Road and the downtown bypass, according to the Suffolk Police Department’s crash report.

The truck slammed into the back of a 2009 Toyota Camry being driven by Jane Ellen McCollum, 47, of Speight Lyons Loop in Chesapeake. The truck pushed the Camry 71 feet from the point of impact and caused it to hit the back of a 1992 Dodge Dakota being driven by Dwight Franklin Morris, 54, of North High Street in Franklin.

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The Camry went under Morris’ truck, causing the truck to flip and roll several times. In the process, the Dodge hit the back of a fourth vehicle, a 2003 Chevrolet Astro, being driven by Stanley Williams William, 46, of Manning Bridge Road in Suffolk.

Unsecured cargo from Morris’ truck also hit a fifth vehicle in an adjacent lane, being driven by Joseph Clifton Holland, 50, of East Riverview Drive in Suffolk.

None of the drivers was seriously injured. The road was closed for several hours while police cleared the accident.