Robert Curtis Dennis, Mary Hatley Dennis Obituary, Death – An Olton couple tragically lost their lives in a collision between their pickup truck and a tractor-trailer on Saturday evening in Hale County. The fatal crash occurred around 4:58 p.m. near the intersection of U.S. Highway 70 and FM 179, east of Olton. The victims, 96-year-old Robert Curtis Dennis and 89-year-old Mary Hatley Dennis, were pronounced dead at the scene, according to a statement from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS).
Authorities believe that Robert Dennis, the driver of a 2022 Chevrolet pickup, was traveling north on FM 179, approaching the stop sign at the intersection of U.S. 70. As he turned left onto U.S. 70, he failed to yield the right of way to a 1997 Peterbilt truck tractor, which was hauling a semi-trailer and heading eastbound on the highway. The tractor-trailer struck the driver’s side of the pickup, causing the deadly crash.
The driver of the tractor-trailer, a 26-year-old man from Elmore City, Oklahoma, was not injured in the incident. Investigators found that both he and the passenger in the pickup were wearing seat belts, though Robert Dennis, the pickup’s driver, was not. According to the DPS, the weather conditions were dry and clear at the time of the crash, but other factors contributing to the incident have yet to be determined, as the investigation remains ongoing.