WARE COUNTY, Ga. — *Correction: A previous version of this report incorrectly stated the driver of the truck.
More details are known about how a Ware County firefighter lost his life in an accident Thursday, according to a preliminary report from the Georgia State Patrol.
GSP says that at 12:40 p.m. on the day of the accident, troopers responded to Manor Millwood Road near Manor Waresboro Road in Ware County, in reference to a fatal single-vehicle crash.
The crash investigation determined that Bobby 'Blue' Smith of the Ware County Fire and Rescue Department, was a passenger in a firetruck south on Manor Millwood Road. The driver lost control of the firetruck causing it to travel off the roadway onto the west shoulder. The firetruck then began to rotate counterclockwise as it overturned across the roadway.
The report states that the firetruck then struck a tree and made its final, "uncontrolled" resting point in a nearby ditch on the passenger's side. Smith was partially ejected from the vehicle and was pronounced dead on scene.
The Georgia State Patrol's Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team is assisting with the investigation.
"Please keep his family, friends, and Ware County Fire Rescue in your thoughts and prayers in the upcoming days," said Dee Meadows, Ware County Fire Chief on Facebook.
An obituary was shared by the department and reads, in part:
"Bobby Blue Smith, 24, of Waycross died Thursday June 22, 2023 in Ware County. He was born in Waycross on July 12, 1998 to Bobby Green Smith and Crystal Blue Freeman. Blue had made Ware and Pierce County his home for his entire life. He was a 2017 graduate of Pierce County High School. Blue was a dedicated firefighter for the Ware County Fire Department. He also took great joy in working for Kenny Hodges and Hodges Plumbing, and for Chris Walker and Walker's Lawn Care. A humble follower of Christ, Blue was a light in his community, who loved people and uplifted each and everyone he came in contact with. He loved to fish, hunt and ride buggies, especially at Fat Daddy's ATV Park. More than anything, he loved his family and cherished the quality time he was able to spend with them. He was preceded in death by his paternal grandparents, Bobby Smith and Virginia Hickox."
