A 19-year-old from Jefferson was killed late Saturday as she stood outside her vehicle along I-985 in Gainesville. Charisma Farmer was parked in the emergency lane with her flashers on when a pickup truck struck and killed her, state troopers say.
The fatal crash was the second of two wrecks that happened around the same time on February 5 in the southbound lane near Exit 20 in Hall County. State troopers were on their way to the first crash when Farmer was killed.
According to the Georgia State Patrol, the preliminary investigation shows a Honda Element struck a guardrail near the Queen City Parkway exit around 10:21 p.m., disabling the vehicle and leaving it partially in the road with no lights on. Farmer pulled the Chevrolet Cobalt she was driving into the emergency lane with her flashers on. She was outside her vehicle when a Chevrolet Avalanche rounded the curve and struck the rear of the disabled Honda. The impact forced the Avalanche off the road where it struck Farmer, the guardrail, and her vehicle, fatally injuring the teen.
According to troopers, the driver of the Honda left the scene. The crash temporarily shut down the southbound lanes of the interstate near the crash site.
The Georgia State Patrol’s Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team is assisting the Gainesville patrol post with its investigation.
