Early morning accident sends one to St Elizabeth with head injuries

At 1:15 Sunday morning, a call came through Jasper County Dispatch regarding a 19-year-old man who was hit by a truck in the 1400 block of FM 3414.

The driver, 18-year-old Rylan Byrd said that he stopped the truck at an automatic gate and was waiting for it to open.

The passenger, Evan Purtiman said that he told Byrd that he was going to get out at the gate, but Byrd said that he didn't hear him say anything. Purtiman then opened the door and attempted to get out of the vehicle.

It was at that time that the truck rolled forward, knocking Purtiman to the ground where he struck his head on some rocks.

Jasper County Information Officer Karli Cherry said that Purtiman was conscious and was talking to investigators at the scene.

Because it was a head injury, Purtiman was flown to St Elizabeth in Beaumont in stable condition.

Cherry said that no criminal charges have been filed and at this time, none are expected.