Published: June 15, 2006 02:55 pm      

Teen still critical after weekend accident

Palestine — A 19-year-old Palestine woman injured in a weekend auto accident when a truck/tractor apparently ran a red light remains in “critical” condition at a Tyler hospital.

Martha Michelle Gaines, 19, of Palestine was listed in “critical” condition Tuesday at Trinity Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler, according to hospital spokesperson John Moore.

Gaines sustained injuries of unknown type shortly after 12:15 p.m. Sunday in an accident at the intersection of North Loop 256 and Sterne Avenue, according to police.

Police say Gaines was traveling eastbound on Sterne Avenue through the intersection of North Loop 256 when a 1990 GMC truck/tractor operated by 46-year-old Kenneth Lee Woodworth of White Oak ran a red light, striking her 2000 Buick Park Avenue broadside.

Texas Department of Public Safety officials later determined that Woodworth’s vehicle had no trailer brakes, according to Palestine Police Sgt. Pete Todd.

The registered gross vehicle weight of Woodworth’s vehicle was 72,000 pounds, according to an accident report.

Woodworth was hauling some type of oilfield equipment, according to Todd.

Charges in the case are pending and likely will be filed in the coming weeks, according to the sergeant.

The impact of the collision knocked Gaines’ vehicle into a 1998 Ford Ranger pickup operated by 57-year-old Gary L. Hughes of Palestine, according to police.

Hughes and his wife, Louise Hughes, 57, also of Palestine, were both transported to Palestine Regional Medical Center with undisclosed injuries which were not believed to be life threatening.

Woodworth was not injured, according to police.

————

Paul Stone may be contacted via e-mail at pstone@palestineherald.com