Clayton Vaughan: New dad dies after loose tire from trailer flies into windshield of his SUV in freak accident
HOUSTON, TEXAS: Clayton Vaughan, a young father, tragically died when a trailer tire crashed with his SUV's windshield on a Texas freeway. Police are currently looking into the circumstances behind the unfortunate incident that claimed the life of the 21-year-old father.
Vaughan, the father of a four-month-old baby girl, was traveling in the passenger seat of his girlfriend's Kia SUV when an unexpected crash happened on the Katy Freeway in Houston on Thursday, April 13, at 8.30 pm. A tire from a landscaping-style trailer traveling in the eastbound lane came loose, bouncing into the westbound lanes, and this caused the horrific accident. The trailer's driver did not stop, leaving the victims, witnesses, and law enforcement personnel with numerous unanswered concerns about what had actually transpired. Vaughan's girlfriend and the mother of the four-month-old child are expected to be well.
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'Negligence of some sort played a role in this'
Evan Richard, Vaughan's uncle, expressed his sorrow over his nephew's death and urged witnesses to come forward in order to gather more information about what transpired, according to ABC 13. He said, "I'm not here to place judgment. Things happen, but obviously, negligence of some sort played a role in this."
Richard continued, "He was a passenger in a vehicle struck by an oncoming tire. What are the chances of something like this happening? [You should] know, you are endangering lives around you, and I can’t bring him back. But I can get the message out that you can do better. The city can do better."
Richard said his nephew died before his time and before he could witness his daughter grow up. However, Richard asserts that Vaughan will be remembered for being a loving person. He stated, "He was a big old teddy bear. He was a young 21-year-old trying to find himself in this hectic world."
'It went straight into the windshield like Boom!'
On the night of the event, Randrell Alexander, who was on the freeway, recalled the commotion when she said she saw the tire fly off the trailer of a black vehicle without a license plate. She said that the tire rolled into the HOV lane before being struck by a white pickup truck and launched into the westbound lanes.
Alexander said, "It went straight into the windshield like Boom! I saw it, I saw glass and I saw the hood pop up and the car started spinning," according to ABC 13. Police said that the driver of the black truck will be charged with failing to stop and provide assistance if and when they are found.
Priscilla Stansell, Vaughan's aunt, started a GoFundMe to seek money for the fatherless four-month-old baby girl and to cover funeral costs for her new nephew. Out of the $30,000 goal, GoFundMe has been able to raise $16,712.