The family members died of blunt force trauma, Chilton County Coroner Arron Ellison confirms to PEOPLE
Credit: Tonya Granville-Hairston/Facebook
NEED TO KNOW
- Three family members died after an SUV crossed the median on an Alabama interstate and struck a pickup truck head-on on Monday, July 20
- The driver of the second vehicle was transported to a hospital for injuries, and a third vehicle sustained damage in the crash
- An investigation into the incident is ongoing
Three members of the same family are dead following a devastating multi-vehicle crash in central Alabama.
On Monday, July 20, just after 11 a.m. local time, a GMC Envoy operated by Valerie J. Granville, a 65-year-old woman from Montgomery, Ala., went over the median on Interstate 65 and struck a GMC Sierra pickup head-on, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency confirmed to PEOPLE in a statement.
The impact from the collision between the truck and SUV sent debris into a Nissan Sentra driven by Drema Webb, a 48-year-old woman from Crossville, Tenn., causing damage to the third vehicle.
After first responders arrived, Granville was pronounced dead at the scene. The two passengers in the GMC Envoy — 39-year-old Vensen E. Granville and 69-year-old Willie J. Gholston, who also hailed from Montgomery — were also fatally injured and pronounced dead at the crash site, officials said.
The driver of the pickup truck that was initially hit, Robert B. Eaton Jr., a 47-year-old man from Meridianville, Ala., suffered injuries and was transported to a medical center in Montgomery for medical treatment.
The crash occurred on the interstate near mile marker 198, about two miles south of Verbena, Ala., in Chilton County, officials said.
Following the deadly incident, Chilton County Coroner Arron Ellison determined that the three victims died of blunt force trauma, he told PEOPLE. Valerie and Vensen Granville and Gholston were all members of the same family, the coroner confirmed.
In a tribute created by Tonya Granville-Hairston, she identified the trio as members of her immediate family.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the tragic loss of my mother, my brother, and my stepdad in a car accident,” she wrote. “We are devastated by this sudden loss and now face the overwhelming cost of final arrangements.”
Credit: Tonya Granville-Hairston/Facebook
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Currently, the toxicology results are pending.
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency had no further information to add as troopers continue to investigate the fatal crash.
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