‘Sun is right in your eyes’: Locals weigh in on possible causes of Johnson County crash
Johnson County residents and those familiar with the stretch of U.S. 67 where six people were killed in a head-on collision around 4 p.m. the day after Christmas say that the time of day and layout of the roads may have played a part in the crash.
According to preliminary information from the Texas Department of Public Safety, a Chevrolet Silverado traveling south on U.S. 67 entered the northbound lane in a no-passing zone near the intersection of County Road 1119 and hit a Honda Odyssey head on. Six of the seven occupants of the minivan died at the scene. The minivan’s seventh occupant and the teenage driver and passenger of the Silverado were airlifted to Fort Worth hospitals with critical injuries.
It is not clear why the pickup entered the no-passing zone, but if the 17-year-old driver was trying to get on CR 1119, he would’ve had to cross the northbound lane to access it, according to maps of the area and Cleburne Assistant Fire Chief Keith Scarbrough.
Scarbrough said southbound drivers headed toward CR 1119 don’t make a 90-degree turn to the left from U.S. 67 but just continue following the highway across oncoming traffic to the county road.
“That road is very fast,” Glen Rose resident Cindy Briggs told the Star-Telegram in a direct message on social media. “And there is no turn lane to navigate any kind of turn to the left if you’re coming south on 67 toward Glen Rose.”
Briggs described the process of crossing the road on that stretch of U.S. 67:
“You could be rear-ended at 70 mph making the left or trying to beat traffic to cross 67 to veer to the left,” she said. “It’s a very dangerous area. Couple that with the sun being brutal when it’s setting. It’s directly in your face blinding you to everything in front of you or coming toward you.”
Multiple people commented on social media about the road branching off to the left and the brightness of the sun in the late afternoon.
“Sending prayers for all involved,” one woman posted. “At that hour the sun is right in your eyes.”
Someone else pointed out that drivers must cross the no-passing zones to reach the county road.
A man whose profile shows he’s from Glen Rose said traffic has increased significantly on U.S. 67.
“Drivers veer across right there to catch that county road and it is a dangerous maneuver because you can’t see because of the sun and you can’t see beyond traffic in front of you,” he posted.
Scarbrough, the assistant fire chief, said parts of U.S. 67 at certain times of the year line up with the setting sun. While it isn’t a problem unique to that road, he said drivers should “use caution and drive accordingly.”
It was around 4 p.m. when the Cleburne Fire Department got the call about the accident, according to Scarbrough. At that hour the sun would have been starting to get low in the sky but not blinding yet, he said.
The Texas Department of Public Safety hasn’t released a preliminary crash report, and Scarbrough emphasized the accident could have been caused by a number of factors.
“It’s just a tragedy for all parties involved,” Scarbrough said.
This story was originally published January 3, 2024 at 2:05 PM.
