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Century Man Slams SUV Into Highway 97 Home (With Photo Gallery)
December 3, 2010
It was a close call for a Molino family Thursday night as a SUV driven by a Century man slammed into their mobile home.
The accident happened about 10:10 p.m. at the intersection of Gibson Road and Highway 97. The driver of a northbound Ford Explorer left the roadway just north of the intersection and missed several trees as it crossed the front yard of the home. The SUV then struck a tree and corner of the mobile home where it became wedged.
The driver, 22-year old Toby Hitchcock of Century, was transported by ambulance to Sacred Heart Hospital with minor injuries. Alcohol was not a factor in the crash, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. The FHP did not specify what charges, if any, Hitchcock faces as a result of the accident.
The three occupants of the mobile home were not injured. It was a frightening experience for a 16-year old resident of the mobile home; she was watching TV in her corner bedroom when the SUV slammed into the corner of the home, shattering a window. The impact slammed the television off a shelf into the room. The homeowner said the entire trailer was shifted on its foundation.
For more photos, including a photo from inside the house, click here.
The Molino Station of Escambia Fire Rescue, Escambia County EMS and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office also responded to the call.
NorthEscambia.com exclusive photos, click to enlarge.
Comments
43 Responses to “Century Man Slams SUV Into Highway 97 Home (With Photo Gallery)”
@ ProudArmyParent….. yes I am sure, he is my brother. But I know the female Tobi Hitchcock you are talking about.
Are we sure this Toby Hitchcock is not a female? I have only known a female Toby Hitchcock that lives in the Cenutry area. Just curious!
Toby is a nice kid, I have known him for a long time. I am glad he is okay and didn’t hurt anyone. I know he would be devastated if he had inflicted harm upon anyone else, because he is a very conscientious young man. Thank God no one was seriously injured.
REGARDING:
“Just think…if we 4 lane hwy 97…then there will be twice as many accidents….but the distance will be half as much Atmore to Molino”
If you double the width of a road, you cut the length in half??
Live and learn
David for mensuration
oopS I MUST APPOLOGIZE, TO JW MY POST WAS MEANT FOR DARWIN.
Jessica and Rachel thanks for the updates on this yung man, and Thank God prayers were answered…………..
By the way we have 5 of our men in our family that were marines and you can bet not one of them would have made JWs comment,,,they are honorable men.
@oldmarine….. any Marine I know would never had made a comment like that… shame on you!
The driver was taken to the hospital where several test were ran because of bleeding from the head. There were no drugs and no alcohol. He fell asleep. Accidents happen, end of story. He is very thankful that no one in the home was injured.
JW, I dont care if what you think. I made a really really good point to everyone who posted stuff on here about him who dont know him or anything about the situation. If I was scared of what people were going to think or cared I wouldnt have said anything on here. & I so agree with ABC. I dont think I could have said it better.
Enough said.
I went to see Toby today & he is doing ok. He has quite a bit of stitches but he will make it. As for the family with the trailor, they are fine as I know & they are fixing the house.
Just think…if we 4 lane hwy 97…then there will be twice as many accidents….but the distance will be half as much Atmore to Molino….some folks cant poor water out of a boot with the instructions on the bottom…..
JUS SITTN N THINKN…but I love to read the comments on here…makes me feel good…know what I mean ?
JW I think you are very very wrong, about folks around here, I for one have no problem telling someone face to face just what I think of them or any other subject, but I will not prejudge……….anyone or anything.as a matter of fact, the dictionary describes the word accident, as a happening that is not forseen, or intended, an unintended happening sometimes resulting from negligence, and until Negligence is proven the person in question or any other person in a similar situation should be given the benefit of the doubt. Thats called respect amd consideration………….Where are you from JW?
Until there are charges or a clarification of the cause it is totally unfair to judge someone,,,,,,, You know wrecks have been caused by heart attacks, strokes, epilepsy and many other medical purposes, mechanical failures, its unfair to come of with “Maybees”,animals crossing the road, speeding, etc.
Good grief no one wants to have a wreck and truly there are sordid causes, talking on cell phones, falling asleep, putting on makeup, even changing the dial on the radio, or putting in a disc. for some………..
JW
No guts, no integrity, armchair quarterbacks if you don’t put your name?
Where is yours?
@OldMarine…Darwin?! really?
@Jessica – don’t get riled up by the comments of folks on here. They will NEVER meet you face to face and speak their mind, no guts or integrity, they don’t know! End of story. Everyone likes to get on here to “armchair Quarterback” thinking they know what their talking about, but they don’t.
Jessica – ” They arnt illegal if they are persription”
If you are impaired it does not matter if they are prescibed or not in the state of florida. It is still DUI if they are impaired on a prescription.
I am so glad everyone is ok. I know it was very scary and the thoughts of what could have happened are awful, but thank God you are all well!!!!
i have to say something look people i know EVERYONE of us is guilty of driving when your tired. whether early in the am going to work or school of in the evenings coming home. so don’t be so quick to judge.
ALL SORTS OF THINGS CAN CAUSE AN ACCIDENT, A FEW WEEKS AGO WHILE ON A TRIP I WAS IN THE PASSENGER SEAT IN THE CAR FOR A WHILE. I GOT TO SEE ALL SORTS OF “THINGS” GOING ON WHEN WE WOULD PASS ANOTHER CAR. A PERSON CUTTING THEIR NAILS. A DRIVER PUTTING ON MAKEUP USING THE REAR VIEW MIRROW. A DRIVER LOOKING AT A NEWSPAPER. ONE LOOKED LIKE THEY WERE TRYING TO USE A COMPUTER THAT WAS ON THE SEAT NEXT TO THEM. ALL THIS IN LESS THAN THREE HOURS.
I just wasted 4 minutes of my life reading the below comments….I’ll never get those minutes back.
The comment by concerned citizen made me think of something. Mothers in the car with small children. What if one of the kids slipped out of the car seat and the mother was trying to get to a place to stop when she lost control of the car? What I am trying to say is that accidents sometimes just happen. This forum is really for the judgmental people of the world. As for left lane drivers, get over it. I drive in the left lane because I generally am doing the speed limit and don’t like the right hand lane because it is usually rougher than the left side. If I see someone coming up from behind me who seems to be speeding, I move over out of the way. If they get a ticket down the road, so be it. Better them than me.
either way you shouldnt judge him if you dont know him. people do their own thing whenever they want. forreal .
Okay, forreal accidents do happen. You don’t need to judge him if you don.t know what happened.before you run your mouth get facts to prove it. honestly when they or if they say hes impaired then judge him. i know toby forreal hes my best friends ex and we hung out a couple of times. his family is goin through a hard time with him bein in the wreck so dang just chill ACCIDENTS DO HAPPEN!!! its nothing new! I’m with you jessica
” highway 97 needs guard rails”
That would be foolish and bounce these idiots back into oncoming traffic.
let them find themselves a tree and hopefully Darwin will take over from there
@Jessica …for your information I do not repeat DO NOT text while driving at all…. have i talked on the cell ..yes that i am guilty of … Have made a big effort not to do that either. texting you simply cannot do while driving … I get on to my children all the time and even people that are my age about texting while driving it distracts you way too much…pull over!!
I know Toby & when he left my house earlier that night he had not done anything drug wise & had not been drinking. Accidents happen people! & everyone needs to stop judging this man. As you sit here & say “How do they not know if he was impaired?” SHAME ON YOU. Shame on you for thinking that about someone you dont know. Do you think that about every accident you come across? Let the police & health care do their job.
As for Oversight- It says no where in the article that they assumed anthing. So what if he was taking perscription meds? They arnt illegal if they are persription. I “assume” that your guilty of being impaired a few times in your life, huh?
Thank you Houndstooth- Accidents do happen. Im sure everyone on here judging has had an accident of some sort or have done something against the law.
Concerned Citizen-I bet your guilty of texting/talking on the phone while you drive, arnt you?
John Payne-Making it a law causes more wreaks because now people are hiding in and looking down more than in there line of view.
Valisa Hedgepeth- He said he fell asleep. For everyone out there who judes him for that, accidents happen. & shame on you twice if you judge him for that because im sure you have been sleepy before & drove.
I think I made my point. :]
To everyone else on here who didnt blame him for being impaired bless you for not being judgemental. As for the family if the home may God bless you & amen that yall are safe.
As for Toby bro get better & if you need any thing let me & Robert know.
Think before you judge people you inconsiderate people of the world.
My kind of accident:
nobody seriously hurt,
no alcohol, so no kid’s life destroyed,
lesson learned,
happy ending and amen.
lindsay!! if you get on and read this im glad your okay and i love you bunches.
I dont know the driver personally but if the cops said he wasn’t impaired then maybe he wasn’t. not every accident is caused by being impaired. I understantd that for this family this is horrible sitting and watching tv and, almost having a car in the middle of the house, but until the FHP finishes the investigation dont pass judgement. Because if this was your family and you know that your family member wasn’t on drug you wouldn’t want to hear everyone on here acusing you or your family member if it wasn’t even the case. But if he was I hope it was a wake up call thing happen so quick and somethings you cant take back and are unable to fix. And thank God everyone in the home is ok.
Well I drive down Hwy 97 all the time and I can honestly say that EVERY time I have lately I have been behind someone who was OBVIOUSLY texting and driving…..swirving all aver the road, speeding up, slowing down…..and almost every time I get on this website I read a story of someone “just running off the road” and getting in an “accident”. Well to me it’s not an accident if you know you shouldn’t be texting and driving in the first place….some people can’t chew gum and walk, much less text and drive!
Had it been being sleepy,avoiding an animal,d.u.i. or texting, a pedestrian would still have been killed had they been struck. Does it really matter why she left the road. Thank God no one was hurt…this time.
Just a note on “john payne”. It has been proven that states where texting and use of cell phones has been banned accidents rates have gone up. It seems that now people at least text or talk with the phone up where they can see it and the road (not that they are paying attention to the road). When it becomes illegal they don’t stop what they were doing, they just start doing it in their lap or on the seat beside them so they won’t get caught.
On another note, can’t anyone just nod off or dodge a dog or deer or something and people on here not instantly blame alcohol or drugs? I don’t know this guy but until people get all the facts it crazy to assume too much.
“Oversight- FHP is always quick to say alcohol was not a factor, but what about other drugs including prescription medications? When a crash such as this one happens, FHP should demand a blood test on the driver to rule out other impairing substances and not be so quick to “assume” the driver wasn’t under the influence of some other intoxicant.”
How do you know the FHP assumed anything. They did the investigation. If he was DUI on drugs he would have been charged as such. Believe it or not LEO’s can not just run around “demanding” peoples blood without probable cause. Most people don’t appreciate law enforcement taking from their body just for the heck of it. These dang civil rights ruin everything. I must have missed the part of the article that said the FHP “assumed” he was not under the influence.
Thank you Houndstooth.I would not want them on my jury.
driver said he fell asleep
I go to school with the 16 year and i know her family quite well, i am so glad her and her family are safe. I also hope for a fast recovery for the man that hit the trailor, 97 is a horrible road at night and very dangerous to travel on.
It’s amazing that people are always so quick to assume drugs, texting, alcohol, were factors in any wreck. You know sometimes accidents happen. I would r
Toby, I am praying for Fast healing and a speedy rocovery man. Take care of yourself, Let Joey or I know if there is anything we can do for you. To the family of the tralier glad your safe and praying for you also
I love you John Payne. Listen up you LEFT LANE BANDITS….the left lane is for PASSING…not for dawdling down the road 5 miles under the speed limit completely oblivious to the traffic piling up behind you.
I think that that the use of test and cell phones should be ban while the vehicle is in motion. Also the law inforcement should start fining all left lane drivers on the four lanes. The signs along the right of way says (slower traiffic move to the right). There is nothing on the sign that says if you are doing the speed limit i can stay in the left lane. People get in the left lane coming out of town and will not get out till they turn in Molino on 97. You can watch the vehicles ahead of you and see when they answer the cell phone are sending a text. Vehicle all over the rode, speed is up and down.
No alcohol……… but probably texting on the his phone .
FHP is always quick to say alcohol was not a factor, but what about other drugs including prescription medications? When a crash such as this one happens, FHP should demand a blood test on the driver to rule out other impairing substances and not be so quick to “assume” the driver wasn’t under the influence of some other intoxicant.
It’s REALLY getting so you’re not safe in your own house.
I think the highway 97 needs guard rails the whole route