By Brandon O’Connor

Reporter

Roy Rawlings, 30, of Chattahoochee, Florida was killed Saturday evening in Decatur County when the motorcycle he was driving collided with the front end of a Chevy Trail Blazer. The crash occurred at the intersection of Hutchinson Ferry and Hanna Town roads at 6:04 p.m.

According to the Georgia State Patrol report, Rawlings was driving his Ninja 636 motorcycle south on Hutchinson Ferry Road at a high rate of speed. The Trail Blazer was stopped at the intersection when the driver pulled out in the path of Rawlings.

Rawlings’ motorcycle reportedly struck the Trail Blazer in the area of the driver’s side headlight. The impact caused the motorcycle to burst into flames and the force of the collision ejected Rawlings from the motorcycle with his final resting place coming 237 feet away from the initial scene. Rawlings was reportedly wearing a helmet. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver of the Trail Blazer told GSP that he did not see the motorcycle until just before impact due to Rawlings’ high rate of speed and the lack of a functioning headlight on the motorcycle.

GSP determined that he was operating his vehicle in an “erratic, reckless, careless or negligent” way and that he was exceeding the posted speed limit at the time of the crash. The driver of the Trail Blazer was found to have failed to yield the right-of-way to Rawlings contributing to the crash.