NEWS

Fatality accident leads to citizens’ safety petition to TxDOT

Published

3 years ago

03/23/2024

The Wise County Commissioner’s Court approved a resolution Monday calling on the Texas Department of Transportation to identify and complete immediate safety improvements at and near the vicinity of an intersection of U.S. 81/287 and County Road 2395. A citizen’s petition seeking changes also is being circulated.
This was the site of a fatality accident on March 9 that took the life of Jeffrey Taylor, 44, Sunset. The Wise County Messenger reported Taylor was killed when his 2022 FM Sierra pickup struck the utility trailer of a 202 Freightliner Cascadia semi-truck driven by Singh Loveprett, Ozone Park, NY. Taylor’s truck hit the tractor-trailer rig at the crossover near CR 2395, just south of the restaurant Punjabi Dhabba.
This recent wreck has further heightened safety concerns expressed by local residents. Quint Burks, pastor of New Vision Ministries, which sits adjacent to the highway crossover, told the Messenger staff this area has always been an issue, but added since the restaurant and truck stop were built north of the crossover it has gotten more dangerous with many near misses. Burks said the truck traffic is causing congestion and with limited visibility at the hill of the highway this is seen as a problem spot by local residents.
A spokesperson for the Texas Department of Transportation told the Messenger staff the wreck is under investigation and depending on the outcome TxDOT will perform a traffic and engineering study of the location to determine if additional safety measures are needed.
The county resolution states this area has been “an ongoing hazard, especially related to commercial truck traffic.” The court and community would like to have the area studied and improved to prevent future deaths, injuries and accidents.
That March 9 fatality wreck resulted in a petition and a public outcry for changes at the entrances and exits of the truck stop. It had more than 2,000 signatures earlier this week reported the Messenger.
Taylor’s funeral service was on march 17 at Crossroads Church in Decatur. He was born in Houston to Raymond and Judy Taylor and graduated from Spring Woods High in 1997. He graduated from Southwestern University in Georgetown with a degree in business in 2001. Taylor operated his own audio, video and lighting production company, Taylor Pro Audio, which worked with churches, businesses and events across Texas and surrounding states. Taylor also acted as operations manager for Petra Coatings.
The 44-year-old and his wife Sara made their home in the Sunset area, with their children Callum and Evan. His parents Raymond and Judy Taylor reside in Alvord along with other family members.

COUNTY LIFE

Montague County sees 56.1% voter turnout in midterms

Published

48 minutes ago

11/05/2026

bowienews

Montague County voters joined the rest of the state with a tremendous turnout in Tuesday’s elections.
The elections administration office reported with all 10 precincts counted a turnout of 56.01% or 8,732 casting ballots. There are 15,591 registered voters in the county.
While there were no county contested races, there were two city council and two school board elections.
The Bowie City Council has three places on the ballot. Laura Sproles, incumbent, was not challenged for her place two.
Levi Bailey won the precinct one seat with 925 votes. Valerie Thomerson received 328 votes.
In precinct three, Terry Gunter won with 1,027 votes and Glenda Durham was second with 383

Read the full story in the Thursday Bowie News.

NEWS

Nocona teen dies after apolice chase

Published

55 minutes ago

11/05/2026

bowienews

A 15-year-old Nocona boy was killed in a crash following a law enforcement pursuit just after midnight on Nov. 1.
Sgt. Aaron Brandle, public information officer with the Montague County Sheriff’s office, said the crash occurred on Nov. 1 at around 12:21 a.m.
The vehicle in the pursuit crashed in the 3600 block of Cardwell Road in Montague County. The juvenile was the sole occupant of the vehicle and was ejected as a result of the crash.
The release states responding law enforcement personnel immediately initiated life-saving measures at the scene. The juvenile was subsequently transported to Nocona General Hospital, where despite continued life-saving efforts, he was pronounced deceased.

While the authorities have not publicly identified the deceased, several community efforts have been launched to assist the family of AR “Mando” Alcantar, a sophomore at Nocona High School. Students and staff also have taken steps to remember the popular young man.

A Gofundme account also has been sent up under the name Small Town, Big Hearts – Help support the Alcantar Family. It was organized by Kelsey Cabrera.

(Top photo – AR “Mando” Alcantar)

Read the full report in the Thursday Bowie News.

The Bowie News staff apologizes for the error in spelling of the the young man’ s name in the print edition. It stated “Mondo” and that was incorrect. We did not find the error until after press time.