April 2, 2002

PRESS RELEASE
To: Newsroom
For Immediate Release
Contact: Brian A. Crawford, Public Information Officer
Phone: 673-6652, cell: 455-2609, page: 675-2137

Woman Thrown From and Ran Over by Shuttle After Collision With Dump Truck

An airport rent-a-car shuttle driver was thrown from her bus and ran over by its back wheels this afternoon after a collision with a dump truck in front of Shreveport Regional Airport.

The accident occurred just after 1:30 p.m. at the intersection of Hollywood Avenue and Monkhouse Drive. Reports show that the shuttle was coming out of Regional Airport, headed north on Monkhouse, and a city of Shreveport Streets and Drainage dump truck was traveling west on Hollywood when the accident occurred.

According to an eyewitness at the scene, when the two vehicles collided, the driver of the shuttle, Irene Cooks, 47, of Shreveport was thrown out of the front folding doors of the bus and onto the street. The shuttle then proceeded forward, running over some portion of Cook’s lower extremities. The bus came to rest facing the opposite direction - now pointing towards the airport. The driver of the truck, Abraham Ester, 58, of Shreveport, told officials that he had the green light and was proceeding through the intersection when his vehicle was struck on the back driver’s side by the shuttle.

Cook was treated and transported by department paramedics to LSUHSC. Her injuries were listed as serious. It was not clear whether she was wearing a seatbelt or not. Ester received no injuries as a result of the accident. ###
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