By Staff
AT THE SCENE n Members of the Sam Dale Volunteer Fire Department assist rescue personnel from Naval Air Station Meridian Friday afternoon after a jeep and log truck collided. Photo by Paula Merritt/The Meridian Star.
By Sharon White/The Meridian Star
Feb. 3, 2001
A Naval recruiter was killed Friday when her Jeep Ranger collided with the rear of a log truck headed south on Highway 39 North. The Jeep was dragged 441 feet before coming to a stop.
Trooper Andrew Emerson of the Mississippi Highway Patrol said 31-year-old Marion Rice apparently "missed or ignored" a stop sign at Stennis Drive as she moved through the intersection about 4:30 p.m.
Rice died about 8 p.m. at Jeff Anderson Regional Medical Center.
The driver of the log truck, 38-year-old William McBeth of Union, was treated at Jeff Anderson and released after receiving treatment for head injuries he suffered in the crash.
The speed limit on that stretch of Highway 39 is 65 mph.
Rice was a Naval recruiting officer stationed in Montgomery, Ala. Reports from the Navy and the Mississippi Highway Patrol office indicate she was originally from Dayton, Ohio.
Joseph Diesman, commanding duty officer for NAS Meridian, was on the scene shortly after the crash.
Diesman said Shadow Day is an occasion for students to follow and observe a typical day in the life of a Navy officer.
Meridian firefighters were called to use the Jaws of Life to extricate Rice from the Jeep, but volunteers had "pulled the dash board off her chest before they could get there," said Stephan Snow, firefighter for NAS Meridian and safety officer for Sam Dale Volunteer Fire Department.
Sharon White is a staff writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail her at swhite@themeridianstar.com