Staff Reports

A four-car wreck on the east bound lanes of I-20 near the Seven Islands Road exit left a 9-year-old girl dead and temporarily shut down traffic last Friday afternoon.

According to reports filed by Georgia State Patrol officers, a 1996 GMC Sonoma pickup truck reportedly driven by Deborah Hartwell, of Greensboro, was behind three other vehicles, all of which had slowed to avoid ongoing construction work on the freeway. Hartwell’s vehicle reportedly struck a sedan that contained 9-year-old Terriniesha Brock, sending the vehicle into the median where it came to rest. A third and fourth vehicle were also struck as Hartwell’s vehicle came to rest on the roadway.

Brock was flown to Eggleston Children’s Hospital in Atlanta by helicopter, where she was pronounced dead on arrival. Her mother suffered serious injuries, and was flown to the Atlanta Medical Center, while several other occupants of the other vehicles were transported to Morgan Memorial Hospital.

No charges have been filed regarding the accident, but an investigation by the GSP Special Collision Reconstruction Team continues at this time.