This year there were over double the amount of vehicle-related fatalities compared to last year.

In 2021, there were four vehicle-related fatalities and this year there have been a total of nine. The first traffic fatality of the year involved 28-year-old Brittany Goralski on Jan. 15. She was traveling inbound on Smithville Hwy. when her vehicle reportedly went off the left side of the highway and struck a driveway culvert head on. 

Brandon Gibson, 34, was involved in a single-vehicle accident on March 12. Gibson was traveling inbound on Hwy. 55 and had just passed the exit ramp in front of Warren County High School when he veered right and crashed down a 30-foot embankment. Gibson was airlifted to Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga, but ultimately succumbed to his injuries on March 17. 

Bryan Jennings, 21, and Katelyn Rogers, 20, lost their lives when Jennings’ motorcycle collided with an SUV in front of First Baptist Church on March 29. This accident prompted the city to put caution lights at the intersection. 

Joan Fay Hale Jordan, 86, was involved in a wreck at the intersection of the bypass and Sunset Drive on May 6. She was riding with her husband, Robert Louis, and they reportedly had the green light and were pulling from Sunset onto the bypass when a pickup driven by Roger Curtis, 55, was traveling inbound and reportedly failed to stop at the red light. Joan was transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center and succumbed to her injuries 10 days after the crash. 

Tara Thomas Campbell, 39, lost her life in a single-car crash that occurred on Aug. 6. According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, her car was reportedly spotted by McMinnville Police running a red light at the intersection of the bypass and Smithville Hwy. Blue lights were activated to perform a routine traffic stop, but Campbell reportedly sped away on the bypass. As she passed the jail, she began driving on the grassy median and hit a concrete culvert which caused her vehicle to flip and she was ejected.

Ryan Anthony Travers, 29, of Liberty was identified as the pedestrian struck in Rock Island on Nov. 9. Warren County 911 dispatch received two calls indicating a male was walking in the roadways creating a safety hazard. Rock Island resident Arellano Ramirez, 70, was identified as the driver of the vehicle that struck Travers. According to Attorney General Chris Stanford, Ramirez was violating no laws at the time of the accident.

Jennifer, 23, and Veronica Grifaldo, 37, lost their lives in an accident that occurred on Hwy. 55 on Dec. 6. The pair were traveling outbound on Hwy. 55 when 18-year-old Daniel Davidson reportedly crossed the continuous turn lane into oncoming traffic and struck their car. Jennifer was killed on impact and Veronica later succumbed to her injuries at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. 

Local law enforcement officers are attempting to combat accidents by increasing patrols and monitoring areas with a large number of crashes.