A Cookeville man died in a crash on Highway 111 in Overton County Wednesday, October 16.

Bob Allen, 71, of Cookeville, was driving a 1952 Chevy Deluxe on Highway 111 South in the right lane when Michael Owens, 39, of Byrdstown, rear-ended Allen, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol report.

“Vehicle two (Allen) then left the right side of the roadway and flipped twice before coming to a rest,” the report states. “Driver two (Allen) was ejected from the vehicle and came to a final rest 30 feet from vehicle two.”

He died on the scene from his injuries, according to the report.

Charges are pending against Owens, according to the report.

Allen was not wearing a seatbelt, the report states.

Trooper Neil Matthews investigated.

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The parents of two-year-old Steven Pierce are suing the state over the death of their son during a flash flood event at Cummins Falls State Park, alleging the state’s negligence led to his death.

Steven Pierce, of Eddyville, Kentucky, was visiting the park with his parents when waters rose from a safe level in roughly two minutes, requiring the staff to evacuate Sunday, June 9.

Cummins Falls had been closed on Friday and Saturday before the evacuation due to floodwaters but was reopened Sunday after water had receded.

Pierce’s body was recovered at approximately 7:15 a.m. Monday, his body was found less than a half mile away from where he was last seen in the Blackburn Fork River. His death was the third in two years at Cummins Falls.

“The (family) had no idea how dangerous the park was. They’re from Eddyville, Kentucky, and it’s probably more well known locally that (Cummins Falls) isn’t a walk in the park,” said Christopher Smith, attorney for the Pierce family. “Curtis Pierce was stranded on a rock for about three or four hours after his child had been swept out of his arms. It’s terrible what happened.”

A July letter from the attorney of the family to the state indicated the possible plans to sue.

“We send this correspondence in the hope of opening settlement discussions with the state,” the letter said. “Please let us know if that is something the state is amenable to. If not, we will proceed with a suit before the Claims Commission.”

The lawsuit alleges the state’s negligence stems from a series of human errors, including the failure to install a warning system in 2017 following the death of two women, deciding to open the park on Sunday and remain open despite receiving a call from the National Weather Service at roughly 12:30 p.m. warning that rain was coming to the area.

The complaint filed in the Tennessee Claims Commission also alleges that Curtis Pierce was misdirected by park rangers from higher ground trapping him and his son, Stephen.

In the complaint, the background alleges the life jacket Steven Pierce was wearing at the base of the falls was required by the state to be left at the site and when heading back to the trail, park rangers blew their whistles signaling an evacuation.

According to the complaint, guests were informed to head back through the gorge to the Trail but were then told to seek higher ground, which at the time was not clearly marked. When a friend of Pierce called out to him to relay the new instructions, he reportedly saw the current sweep away the father and son.

Cummins Falls State Park gorge area was closed following Pierce’s death until August when Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation Deputy Commissioner Jim Bryson held a press conference saying the park would reopen with new safety measures.

Safety improvements include new policies requiring life jackets and implementing a fair-weather opening policy, with access to the gorge and falls only being allowed when weather permits.

The monitoring system was a partnership with Tennessee Tech professors. It was proposed following the deaths of two women in 2017 at the park, when a “wall of water” reportedly engulfed the gorge, and many park visitors had to be pulled from the area by rescue squads.

Since reopening, added warning systems have been implemented including closing the gorge area if there is rain in the watershed which causes flooding, but the water gauge system is still not complete.

“According to the Tennessean, ‘the state opened the project up to bidders. After a series of emails between procurement officials and Tennessee Tech about potential suppliers, the process stalled’ ” Bryson said the complaint reads.

Tech professor Evan Hart was one of the heads of the project and previously told the Herald-Citizen that even with the system in place there will be risks in the park.

“It’s not a magic bullet,” Hart previously said. “(But) it should increase the safety.”

The lawsuit seeks the full limit of monetary damages which would amount to $900,000.

TDEC Deputy Communications Director Kim Schofinski said TDEC does not wish to comment on the pending legal matter at this time.