LACOMBE, La. — A man was killed Friday night after he apparently lost control of his truck due to a flat tire and crashed off a highway in St. Tammany Parish, state police officials said.
The single-car accident happened around 8:55 p.m. Friday night on U.S. 190 in Lacombe and claimed the life of the driver, 55-year-old Mark Quillin of Lacombe.
According to Louisiana State deputies, Quillin was driving west and was near Transmitter Road when, for reasons still under investigation, the front right tire of his pickup truck deflated down to the rim.
The truck then veered off the right side of the road and overturned into a ditch. Quillin was seriously injured and was pronounced dead on the scene by local EMS, officials said.
Upon investigation, deputies learned that Quillin was not wearing a seat belt during the time of the crash.
Officials said the crash investigation was ongoing and blood samples were collected to be tested at a later date, as per standard procedure.
No further information was available.
This accident was the second fatal incident on U.S. 190 in Lacombe in a week. Just east, at the intersection of the highway and Tranquility Road, a 22-year-old Slidell man was thrown off a motorcycle and killed after a driver failed to yield last Friday, police officials said.