An 18-year-old Auburn University student was killed Wednesday night in a three-car accident on Alabama Highway 14 that also injured three people, including one seriously.
Andrew Jackson Thurmond IV of Birmingham died of a massive head injury and was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, according to Lee County Coroner Bill Harris.
Thurmond was a passenger in a 1998 Corvette driven by Scott Leighton of Kildeer, Ill., also an AU freshman, according to Harris.
At approximately 10:13 p.m., Auburn firefighters received the call regarding the accident, Auburn fire Battalion Chief Matt Jordan said.
It appears that Leighton was traveling “at a high rate of speed” eastbound on Alabama Highway 14 when he lost control of the vehicle after running off the edge of the roadway and then struck two other vehicles, Harris said.
When Auburn firefighters arrived at the scene, one of the vehicles was on fire, according to Jordan.
The driver of one the vehicles struck by Leighton was taken by Life Saver helicopter to Columbus Regional Hospital, Harris said.
Leighton was transported to East Alabama Medical Center, where he was listed in fair condition Thursday afternoon, according to EAMC Public Relations Manager John Atkinson
The driver and passenger of the other vehicle involved in the accident were also transported to EAMC with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the police release.
“Alcohol is suspected to be a factor in the collision,” Harris said in a written statement.
Thurmond’s body was sent to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences in Montgomery, according to Harris.
The accident remains under investigation by the Lee County coroner’s office, the Auburn Police Division and the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences.
bharvey@oanow.com | 737-2546
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