One Dead After Auto-Pedestrian Accident Involving DOH Vehicle

VALLEY HEAD, W.Va. — Police identified Earl Franklin Woods, Jr., of Valley Head, as the man killed in an auto-pedestrian accident on U.S. Route 219 shortly after 8 a.m. Thursday morning.

According to a preliminary investigation by the Randolph County Sheriff’s Department, an Elkins man was driving a 2011 Ford Econoline van, registered to the West Virginia Department of Transportation, Division of Highways, southbound on U.S. Route 219 near Valley Head.

Police said the driver just finished negotiating out of a curve when the front passenger side of the vehicle struck Woods, who was walking northbound on the southbound side of the highway

Woods was pronounced dead at the scene.

The cause of the collision is still under investigation by deputies.

The DOH is also investigating the accident. Communications Director Brent Walker anticipates having more information on Friday. He said “his heart goes out to anyone affected by the accident.”