Crash kills local man
A 40-year-old Uniontown man died Tuesday morning after the vehicle he was driving struck a utility pole along Route 119 near Hayman Road in Georges Township, state police said. According to Fayette County Coroner Dr. Phillip Reilly, Earl “Stretch” Swaney III was pronounced dead at the scene by Deputy Coroner Dean Whitmarsh at 8:10 a.m., approximately six hours after the crash occurred.
Apparently the 1984 Dodge pickup Swaney had been driving went unnoticed for some time after the crash, Reilly said.
According to Reilly, Swaney was headed north along Route 119 at 2 a.m. when he lost control of the vehicle near the Morgantown Road exit causing the vehicle to become airborne. The pickup then struck a utility pole along the vehicle’s right side and rotated causing the roof to be crushed.
The truck came to rest upright in a grassy area along the roadway, Reilly said. He noted that the victim was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the accident and that the pickup did not have an airbag.
Reilly said he determined the cause of death to be blunt force injuries to the head, face and neck and noted that high speed did play a part in the crash.
He said there would be a toxicology test performed to see if alcohol was involved in the crash, but he said results will not be known for at least a week.
He also noted that while an autopsy will not be necessary, he will perform an inquest at a later date.
Swaney was born Nov. 10, 1962, in Uniontown and worked with his father in Collier where they operated an auto body shop.
He is survived by two children: Natasha Swaney and Earl Swaney IV; his former wife, Myra Swaney; his father, Earl Swaney II and his wife Karen; his mother Sharon Thomas; his sister Ronalee Aldridge and her husband Jason of St. Inigoes, Md.; his brother Michael Swaney and his wife Chris of Uniontown; and several nieces and nephews.
Friends will be received today from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. in the Goldsboro-Tomi Funeral Home, 21 E. Church St., Fairchance, and Friday until 11 a.m. the hour of service, with the Rev. Kathy Griffith officiating.
Burial will be private.