A Minden couple was killed and their young child injured in a two-vehicle crash south of Carthage, Texas, Sunday morning, according to a report in The Panola Watchman.
Hunter Wilkes and Alexis Wilkes, both 21 of Minden, died as a result of the crash. Their 2-month-old son Jett was taken to the hospital in stable condition, the Texas Department of Public Safety told the newspaper.
According to multiple Facebook posts by individuals who knew the couple and churches with which they were associated, the Wilkes were on their way to church when the crash happened. Hunter Wilkes was serving as an associate pastor at Eastside Baptist Church in Gary, Texas. His father, the Rev. Mike Wilkes, is the pastor of Whispering Pines Missionary Baptist Church.
The crash happened just before 10 a.m. on U.S. Highway 59, about 250 feet south of the Carthage city limits. DPS said the driver of a truck was towing a trailer northbound in the left lane when it hit Wilkes' SUV as he entered the intersection of the loop exit ramp and Highway 59.
The driver of the truck, identified as Jerry Galloway, 79, of Fort Smith, Ark., was taken to UT Health Carthage in stable condition.