ST. MARTIN PARISH, La. — A 19-year-old Arnaudville man died after being thrown from a trailer being pulled by a truck down the highway.
April 6, Jamison Phillips was riding in a trailer being pulled by a pickup truck to transport a mattress down Louisiana Highway 686 Frontage Road near Highway 347, when he was thrown off the trailer, for reasons still under investigation.
Phillips sustained serious injuries and was taken to a nearby hospital. On April 11, Louisiana State Police Troop I was notified Phillips died from his injuries.
The driver of the truck pulling the trailer was not injured.
According to Troop I, Louisiana law prohibits riding in unsafe areas of a vehicle, such as on running boards, tailgates, fenders, or other exterior parts not designed for passengers. Children under the age of 12 are prohibited from riding in the bed of a pickup truck or in a utility trailer while traveling on a public roadway, and no one is allowed to ride in the bed of a pickup truck on an interstate highway. Trailers and similar equipment are not designed to carry people and do not have seats, seat belts, or protection. Sudden stops, turns, or bumps in the road can easily throw someone from a trailer, even at low speeds. Buckle up every seat, every ride, every time.
