A three-car wreck on Interstate 55 Sunday morning resulted in two deaths, according to Panola County Coroner Gracie Gulledge.

One of the two people killed was 18-year-old Dustin Leon Buice from Water Valley.

 

A three-car wreck on Interstate 55 early Sunday morning resulted in two deaths, according to Panola County Coroner Gracie Gulledge.

One of the two people killed was 18-year-old Dustin Leon Buice from Water Valley.

The wreck occurred in the southbound lane on I-55, just south of South Batesville exit.

The Batesville Police Department is investigating the wreck.

According to reports, Buice was traveling north on I-55 at about 1:40 Sunday morning when for unknown reasons, he veered into the median and then over-corrected, causing his vehicle to flip over and come to rest in the southbound lane. Two other vehicles traveling south collided with Buice.

Buice was pronounced dead at the scene, according Gulledge.

Mattie Willis, 79, of Grenada, died later at Merit Health Batesville West from injuries she sustained in the wreck. She was a passenger in one of the vehicles that crashed into Buice’s vehicle.

Gulledge said six people were either transferred to Merit Health or flown to the Regional Medical Center in Memphis with serious injuries.

Batesville Police Chief Jimmy McCloud called the wreck “tragic.”

Buice, the son of Lester Buice of Sardis and Teresa Jaco Bailey of Water Valley, graduated from Water Valley High School in May. He was an avid outdoorsman and enjoyed fishing, hunting and riding on four-wheelers. He was currently a student at the Base Camp Coding Academy in Water Valley.

“I am currently learning python language at Base Camp Coding Academy in Water Valley, Ms,” Buice wrote on his LinkedIn profile. “By the end of this academy I attend to have learned more computer languages like javascript, c++, and other types of languages.”

A memorial gathering is scheduled for 5 p.m. tonight at Wells Funeral Home.