Wreck on US 287 Results in Fatality

By Will Johnson
Messenger Reporter

ANDERSON COUNTY – A wreck on the morning of Tuesday, Jan. 24 claimed the life of one person and sent another to the hospital.

The wreck occurred near the intersection of State Highway 19/US Highway 287 and Anderson County Road 181 shortly before 7 a.m. and involved “… a truck-tractor towing a semi-trailer and a passenger car,” according to information received from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS).

According to the DPS, “The driver of the truck-tractor was identified Joe Salva. Salva was flown to CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Francis Hospital in Tyler where he was treated and released. The passenger car involved in the crash was a 2004 Chevrolet Tahoe driven by Rebecca Lynne Burke, 61, of Elkhart.”

Burke was pronounced dead at the scene.

First responders from Elkhart, Grapeland, Slocum and Lonestar Hazmat responded to the location as soon as soon as information about the crash was received.

The DPS preliminary investigation indicated Burke “… was traveling southbound on SH-19 (US-287) south of the city of Elkhart when for reasons unknown, she traveled into the oncoming lane and struck the truck-tractor towing a semi-trailer.”

The crash shut down the highway for several hours while TxDOT workers re-routed traffic to allow Hazmat crews the chance to clear leaked diesel fuel from a ruptured tank on one of the trucks.

The wreck is still under investigation.

Will Johnson may be contacted via e-mail at [email protected].