The guidance counselor at Blountstown Middle School was seriously injured in a four vehicle collision near Kids Kingdom daycare center Friday morning.
Nicole Marchant Purvis, 27, of Altha, was airlifted to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital where she underwent surgery that afternoon.
The County Record spoke with a family friend Tuesday who said Nicole sustained a broken right leg, several broken bones in her right foot and a large cut on her right leg that will have to be grafted. She also suffered a punctured lung that has been repaired with a tube. In addition, she has a broken vertebrae and will be wearing a neck brace for a few months. “She’s got a long haul,” the friend remarked, adding that more surgery on her foot and leg is planned in a couple weeks.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, William S. Cook, 39, of Whigham, Georgia, was behind the wheel of a 2006 Chevrolet truck and was westbound on State Road 20 around 7:20 a.m. In front of him was Dawnyel M. Tolley, 35, of Blountstown, in a 2006 Toyota SUV, along with her three-year-old son, Maddox Tolley. As Tolley stopped to turn into a private driveway at the intersection of SR 20 and Hummingbird Lane, Cook crashed into the rear of her SUV. His truck traveled onto the north shoulder of the road, striking a tree. Tolley’s vehicle drove into the path of a 2005 Chevrolet SUV driven by Purvis who was eastbound on SR 20 after just dropping off her son at the daycare center. The left front of Tolley’s SUV collided with the front of Purvis’ vehicle. Tolley’s SUV then rotated counter-clockwise in the eastbound lane. A 2007 Dodge Van driven by J.A. Fields, 31, of Clarksville, was in the path and the front of the van struck the rear of Tolley’s SUV.
Dawnyel and Maddox Tolley were taken to Calhoun-Liberty Hospital with minor injuries. Cook sustained minor injuries, as did Field’s passenger, 11-year-old Victoria Fields, but they were not hospitalized. J.A. Fields and his other passenger, Gregory Fields, 7, were not injured.
Cook has been charged with careless driving. The accident was investigated by Trooper T. Tindle-Husar.
