Jack Poole, Yojaner Lazo, Reinier Garcia Killed in Truck Accident in Hardeman County, TX
Hardeman County, TX -- March 12, 2023, Jack Poole, Yojaner Lazo, and Reinier Garcia were killed following a semi-truck accident.
Initial details about the accident say it happened at around 3:18 a.m. along US 287 in the area of Goodlett, west of Quanah.
It appears that 33-year-old Reinier Garcia and 32-year-old Yojaner Lazo were in a semi-truck going southbound on the highway. Approaching a crossover, authorities say 23-year-old Jack Poole was in a pickup turning left onto southbound lanes. While the pickup turned, the semi-truck crashed into it. The semi then crashed off-road where it caught fire.
As a result of the crash, Lazo, Garcia, and Poole were all killed. No other injuries were reported. At this time, additional details are unavailable.
This is just a devastating crash to read about—one of the more serious ones in recent memory. With such a chaotic series of events, my concern is if authorities here are going to be able to give the accident the attention it deserves.
A fatal crash involving a semi is almost always complex and involves unique factors that can be mishandled unless approached with extensive experience and proper equipment. The fact this incident ended with one of the vehicles catching fire and everyone involved apparently not around to tell their side of the story, anything less than being as thorough as possible here could easily result in authorities missing something important.
I don't mean to come off as overly doubtful of the authorities. Officers are generally great at their jobs and are as dedicated as anyone to getting grieving families the answers they deserve. But ultimately, they're at the mercy of their employers. If a department doesn't prioritize accident investigations, they may not give officers the time or the tools needed to do the job right.
Hopefully whatever department ultimately is handling things right now is able to treat this crash with the utmost seriousness. That way, the families involved in this awful event can get an explanation that brings them much deserved peace of mind.
[jump]
