RINGGOLD, Georgia — We are working with police to determine details of a fatal and rare accident that killed a woman in Ringgold on Wednesday.
Her boyfriend and family said Autumn McClure of Soddy-Daisy, Tennessee, was killed when the brake caliper of a vehicle traveling in front of her came loose and went through the windshield.
Broadcastify recorded the audio of the broadcast:
“In a small, gray car … a 21-year-old woman was bleeding from her neck. Something had flown through the window on the highway and hit her.”
McClure was in the passenger seat and her boyfriend was driving when the accident happened. The couple was taking Autumn’s little brother to daycare.
A post on McClure’s boyfriend’s Facebook page said she would have turned 21 next month.
Our team found the car in Ringgold on Thursday.
But we’re still waiting for a response from Ringgold police, who we’re told cooperated with the incident. A person who answered the phone told us they couldn’t confirm the details and that a report on the incident probably won’t be released until next week.
We still do not know whether the driver whose vehicle’s brake caliper came loose stopped or was aware of the incident.
Under Georgia state law, driving with an unsecured load is a misdemeanor. The maximum penalty for a conviction is 12 months in prison and a fine of up to $1,000.
Autumn’s obituary states that she was the runner-up of the 2022 graduating class of Soddy-Daisy High School.
There it says…
“Autumn was alert and caring and incredibly smart. She had a warmth about her that will continue to touch hearts even after she is gone.”
A fatal accident with similar circumstances occurred on I-75 in Whitfield County in May 2023. The passenger of one vehicle also died in that accident. Read our story here.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 730 people die each year from objects on the road. 81% of these accidents involve unsecured cargo in passenger vehicles.
Rest assured that we will provide you with updates as soon as they are available.
