Truck found in Red Bay bottoms

By Staff
Melissa Dozier-Cason
Red Bay Police found a missing 18-wheeler in Red Bay bottoms after the driver apparently took a wrong turn on his route to Florence.
James Parnell, of Memphis, mistakenly turned down Mudd Creek Road believing it to be Highway 247. Parnell found himself on a dirt road with nowhere to turn around in the early Friday morning, Pat Creel, Red Bay Police Chief, said.
After getting his rig stuck in mud about a half a mile past the police firing range, he called authorities to get help. The truck was found only a few hundred yards from the natural gas pipeline, Creel said.
"He was lucky that he got stuck before reaching the pipeline," Creel said. "If he had hit the pipeline, it would have been a bad situation in Red Bay."
Red Bay Police began searching for Parnell around 4 am Friday. Office Scotty Belue found Parnell at 4:49 am after receivinga more detailed descriptions of the terrain, Creel said.
Franklin County Sheriff's Deputies arrived on the scene around 6 am. Simpson's Wrecker Service from Florence brought in two wreckers and a backhoe to free the truck.
"We are not able to move the truck with just a backhoe," Paul Sanford, with Simpson's, said. "We need a bulldozer to get it out."
The truck was not damaged until the wrecker service removed it. The incident was classified as a wreck, and the damage caused by the removal of the vehicle was classified as wreck damage, Sanford said.
"We are tried not to damage the truck, but we had to bring in a bulldozer to get it out, and damage can't really be helped," Jeff Franks, wrecker service employee, said.
The truck was freed by midday Friday, and sustained damage in the removal.
The 53-foot long, refrigerated truck was hauling a variety of meats to the Wal-mart Supercenter store in Florence when taking the wrong turn.