June 28--BLOUNTVILLE, Tenn. -- The investigation of a Monday night collision that resulted in the death of a retired Tennessee Highway Patrolman led to additional minor injuries Wednesday as crash scene investigators tried to recreate the accident at the same spot.
Meanwhile, friends and family remembered retired THP officer Barry Myers -- who died the day after the wreck -- as the guy with the beaming smile who made sure stranded motorists felt safe when they needed help.
Myers died less than 24 hours after he was flown from a head-on collision on state Highway 75 and hospitalized. The crash happened near Tri-Cities Regional Airport when a motorist crossed the center line and smashed into the oncoming pickup truck driven by Brian M. Myers, 23, in which Barry Myers was a passenger.
Charges are pending, the THP reports. On Tuesday, the THP reported that the other car involved in the wreck was driven by Jennifer J. McClain, of Blountville. However, on Wednesday state police said that Jennifer McClain was the owner of the vehicle while the driver was Jamie Nicole Marissa McClain, 20.
Late Wednesday morning, two state patrolmen who were at the scene helping to reconstruct the accident suffered minor injuries when a car ran off the 55 mile-per-hour road and hit them, THP spokeswoman Dalya Qualls confirmed.
A 19-year-old man from Gray locked up his breaks to avoid hitting a slowing car ahead of him, then skidded off the road and into two troopers with the Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT). They were both treated at Holston Valley Medical Center in Kingsport and released. Possible citations are pending in that incident, Qualls confirmed.
Sentiments of gratitude began pouring in to family members and co-workers almost as soon as word of Myers' death spread Tuesday.
One man ticketed by Myers years ago called the THP to express condolences for the officer with the friendly attitude, Sgt. Ken Wright said.
"He was a powerful man," Wright said of the barrel-chested Myers. "He was a gentle giant."
The kind words for Myers, 62, actually began years ago, said his son, Barry Myers II.
In a restaurant years ago, two women stopped the son to say their father's life turned around the day the officer charged him with driving under the influence.
Said the son: "The Bible says that a good name is cherished above riches ... and I can say my name is Barry Myers and people will say 'I knew your dad.'"
Barry Myers joined the THP in March 1974 and retired Oct. 30, 2009. He spent his first year patrolling Hamblen County and after that transferred to Sullivan, where he spent the rest of his career.
"I've had people tell me my dad sat with them on the side of the road when it was snowing and they were stuck waiting for help," the son said. "He made them feel safe."
Sullivan County Sheriff Wayne Anderson, who knew Myers for nearly 30 years, recalled him as the man with a friendly face and a life-changing message for just about every motorist stopped.
"He was the kind of guy who would talk with someone and tell them that they needed to straighten up their life on the way to jail," Anderson said.
Myers was a well-known NASCAR fan whose love of the sport became the focus of a Bristol Herald Courier story years ago.
After retirement, he bought a wood-turning lathe and toiled away at transforming blocks of wood into bowls, pens and bracelets for fellow parishioners at Virginia Avenue Baptist Church.
"He enjoyed taking a raw product ... and making a memory of it," the son said.
Still, the retired trooper is most known for the impression he left with the motorists of Sullivan County.
"I would imagine that most people who got stopped by him sent a letter to state patrol and thanked them," Anderson said.
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Copyright 2012 - Bristol Herald Courier, Va.
