In a tragic accident that took place in the US on September 30, a man returning from his daughter’s birthday celebrations fell off a broken bridge after his vehicle fell into a stream. Phil Paxson, a father of two, was driving at night in rainy weather and was using GPS for navigation at the time of the accident. The unfortunate situation arose due to the lack of any barricades indicating dead-ends along with incorrect directions provided by the navigation system.
The incident happened a week ago in the town of Hickory, North Carolina, when the 47-year-old was on his way back home in his jeep after celebrating his child’s 9th birthday. Paxson’s mother-in-law Linda McPhee Koenig revealed the loss to her family on the social networking site Facebook. Koenig wrote that Phil was taking directions from the GPS on the night of the accident because it was “a dark and rainy night”. According to the Post, the navigation system guided Paxson down a concrete path to a bridge that opened into a river. According to Koenig, the bridge has been a dead end since it was destroyed nearly a decade ago, with no repairs made since then.
The mother-in-law claimed that the bridge had no signs or safety barriers that could have warned Paxson of the danger. “It was a completely preventable accident. We are mourning his death,” the post read.
Phil’s sister-in-law has organized a GoFundMe to raise money for the family.
Meanwhile, the North Carolina State Highway Patrol has reported that barricades were removed from the surrounding area to warn drivers of the destroyed bridge. The authority further stated that the road leading to the bridge is not owned by the local municipality or the state, WCNC-TV reported.
Paxon’s sister-in-law Kayla Buber told the news agency she was hoping to find out who was to blame for the damaged bridge.
“Phil didn’t deserve to die like this and that’s a terrible thing. His kids don’t have a father anymore,” Buber said.
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