WARE COUNTY, Ga. — A Ware County firefighter is facing multiple charges including DUI in a traffic crash that killed his coworker in June, according to jail records.
Luke Zimmerman, 26, faces charges of vehicular homicide in the first-degree, DUI, driving too fast for conditions, and failing to maintain lanes, according to Ware County jail records. Zimmerman has since been released on a $30,750 bond after being arrested Friday. He spent three days in jail, records indicate.
On June 22 at 12:16 p.m., the Georgia Department of Public Safety says an officer responded to a single-vehicle crash on Manor Millwood Road near Manor Waresboro Road. Ware County 911 advised that a fire truck had overturned in a ditch and that the occupants were trapped inside, according to the incident report. The fire truck was lying on its passenger side in the east ditch as the entire roadway was blocked, the incident report states.
"Several first responders were on scene actively trying to extract a passenger," an officer stated in the incident report.
The GADPS officer contacted the Ware County Sheriff's Office, as the sheriff's office stated that the driver was in an ambulance and was receiving medical attention, while the passenger was "possibly deceased," the incident report states.
Zimmerman told the GADPS officer that he and "Blue," also known as 24-year-old Bobby Smith, were out checking fire hydrants when Zimmerman said he "may have taken the curve too fast causing him to lose control," the incident report states. Shortly after, the report states that Zimmerman was taken to a local hospital as he consented to a blood draw. Zimmerman's blood sample was sent to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's Crime lab for testing, the report states.
The GADPS says they began taking photos of the scene, painting the roadway evidence, and placing marking flags for the investigation, the incident report states. The report also states that Smith was partially ejected and pinned under the fire truck. Next, GADPS says Ware County Coroner Atha Lucas Smith responded to the scene where Smith was pronounced dead, according to the incident report.
Toxicology reports revealed that Zimmerman's blood alcohol level was .216, almost three times the legal limit.
