Motorcyclist killed in crash near Thermopolis

Posted 9/17/19

A motorcyclist died Friday, Sept. 6, after colliding with a truck in a construction zone near Thermopolis.

The Wyoming Highway Patrol identified the deceased as 58-year-old Joseph B. Watkins of …

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Motorcyclist killed in crash near Thermopolis

Posted

A motorcyclist died Friday, Sept. 6, after colliding with a truck in a construction zone near Thermopolis.

The Wyoming Highway Patrol identified the deceased as 58-year-old Joseph B. Watkins of Thermopolis.

At around 4:45 p.m., Watkins was driving northbound on U.S. Highway 20 on a 2009 Harley Davidson. As Watkins entered a construction zone, a Ford F-550 ahead of him slowed to a stop at the direction of a flagger. However, Watkins failed to notice traffic was slowing down and laid the motorcycle on its side as he attempted to brake. The Harley collided with the back of the Ford, according to a report from the Wyoming Highway Patrol.

Watkins, who was not wearing a helmet, was transported to the Hot Springs Memorial Hospital, where he succumbed to injuries sustained in the crash.

The driver of the Ford has been identified as Vern A. Tuss, 29, of Anaconda, Montana. Tuss was wearing his seatbelt and not injured in the crash. Two passengers in the Ford — a 36-year-old resident of Miles City, Montana, and a 22-year-old from Bozeman, Montana — were also both wearing their seatbelts and were uninjured.

The Highway Patrol said driver inattention is being investigated as a possible contributing factor.

It was the 110th fatality on Wyoming’s roadways in 2019 — compared to 76 at this time last year, and 103 in 2017.

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