Car parts and debris scattered across U.S. Highway 70 Wednesday evening, September 24, as first responders extricated entrapped occupants from this week’s second head-on collision between Huntingdon and Jackson.
Diesel engines of rescue equipment hummed in the background, and two residents near the junction of Tate School Road and U.S. 70 stood outside watching paramedics load the injured into ambulances.
“We heard it,” recalled one woman, pointing toward the scene. “My husband ran down there right after it happened.”
Her son also left to direct traffic until help arrived.
While the family didn’t actually see the accident take place, Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) investigated the scene and reconstructed the likely series of events.
According to their preliminary report, two vehicles collided in the eastbound lane of U.S. 70 at around 5:35 p.m.: a 2020 Chevy Blazer driven by 42-year-old Rosa Dabbs and a 1998 Toyota Camry operated by 26-year-old Anais Benitez with 46-year-old Carmen Rodriguez as passenger.
Dabbs was driving east toward Huntingdon and Benitez was headed west.
After the vehicles collided, Dabb’s vehicle veered into some nearby trees, and Benitez’s vehicle came to rest facing the opposite direction of travel
Carroll County Rescue Squad, Huntingdon Fire Department, and several stations with Carroll County Fire Department arrived within six minutes of the 911 call. Baptist EMS, Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, THP, Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), and Carroll County EMA also responded.
Responders pulled two entrapped occupants to safety, while authorities requested helicopters to transport the injured. Rainclouds prevented airlifting, and EMS transported all three occupants by ambulance to Baptist Hospital.
Later in the night, helicopters flew two of the three to Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville. Their specific injuries and current conditions are not known at the time of this writing.
All occupants except Benitez wore seatblets, according to the report. Benitez faces charges pending THP’s investigation.
THP and TDOT closed that section of the highway until 10:30 p.m., forcing hundreds of drivers to use Tate School Rd. as a detour.
This accident is the second to take place this week. Tuesday morning, September 23, two drivers lost their lives in a head-on collision a few miles west toward Jackson.
“This isn’t the first wreck to happen by us,” said the resident who heard the accident.
She explained that in the years she has lived there, “We’ve had two happen in our yard, one at the end of our neighbor’s driveway, and two over there.” She pointed toward the scene of the latest crash.
According to the Tennessee Department of Homeland Security, 16 serious or fatal accidents have occurred along U.S. 70 in Carroll County between January and late September 2025. Nine of those wrecks took place on the stretch between Huntingdon and Jackson.
I drove to Jackson 6 days a week on 70! It’s unbelievable how fast people drive on that highway, tailgating and passing in excess of 75 to 80 miles an hour! There aren’t many areas to pull over and let these maniacs past! In 6 months I NEVER saw 1 traffic stop! I think anyone on that drives more than 5 miles an hour over the limit should be stopped and the license should be violated for a year!!! They all know that there has been many fatalities on the highway and driving fast and reckless is like a premeditated murder! Something has to be done!!