Newcastle Man Dies In Crash

A Newcastle man died in a crash west of the town on Saturday evening, according to a news release from the Wyoming Highway Patrol on Monday.

George Thompson, 27, was driving a pickup eastbound about seven miles east of Newcastle on U.S. Highway 16, when at 7 p.m. it left the highway to the south and was overcorrected to the left, according to the news release from Patrol Sgt. David Wagener.

The overcorrection caused the pickup to travel over the center line of the highway. It then overcorrected to the right. That sent the pickup into a skid and it exited the highway to the south. After leaving the highway, it tripped and rolled multiple times.

The seat belt system in the pickup had been completely removed at some point before the crash. Thompson was was ejected from the pickup and died at the scene.

The Highway Patrol is investigating suspected alcohol use, excessive speed and lack of seat belt use as contributing factors in this crash.

This marked the 48th highway fatality in Wyoming for 2016, compared to 74 fatalities during this same time a year ago.