• Tweet
• Sumo

• Tweet

A North Dakota native died as a result of an automobile accident in Baker County. Paul VanNess, 47, of Sykeston, North Dakota, was in Baker County to attend his father’s funeral the previous day. According to the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP), the accident occurred at the intersection of US 90 and CR 23A (Lowder) in west Macclenny. VanNess, was a passenger in the 2004 Chevrolet Impala driven by his mother, 74-year-old Carolyn P. VanNess of Macclenny. They were traveling northbound on Lowder through the intersection when a westbound truck failed to stop at a red light and struck the passenger side of the car, according to the FHP. The driver of the truck was 34-year-old Amos Smith of Jacksonville. Carolyn VanNess sustained serious injuries and was taken to Shands Jacksonville for treatment.
The purpose of red lights is to help ease the flow of traffic. As our country’s population grows, so does the amount of red lights at intersections. Unfortunately, red lights do not ease traffic jams for those drivers who are “in a hurry”; this often cited excuse for running red lights is a common factor in automobile accidents. In addition, another group of red light runners are those drivers that are inattentive or distracted. For more information on this topic, see man killed in Baker County accident.