BARDWELL, Texas — A small Texas town’s chief of police is dead, along with his son and three others, after a gruesome car accident Sunday morning on State Highway 34 near Bardwell, the Texas Department of Public Safety said Sunday.
Bardwell Police Chief Michael Spurgeon, 67, and his son, Bardwell volunteer firefighter Michael Spurgeon Jr., 40, were killed when the Ford Crown Victoria they were traveling in was hit by a Dodge pickup truck driven by 31-year-old Jose Munoz after Munoz “veered into the eastbound lane of S.H. 34 and struck the Ford Crown Victoria almost head on,” officials said.
Munoz and two children in his backseat, an 8-year-old girl and a 5-year-old boy, also died in the crash.
“Our hearts and condolences go out to the Family and Friends of Bardwell Police Chief Micheal Spurgeon Sr and Bardwell Area Volunteer Firefighter Micheal Spurgeon Jr who were tragically killed in a motor vehicle accident this morning,” a Sunday post on the Bardwell Volunteer Fire Department’s Facebook page read. “Please keep our department, our community and the additional affected families in your prayers.”
An emergency city council meeting is planned tonight to discuss the deaths of Spurgeon and his son.
Ennis ISD, where the Munoz children went to school, isued the following statement Monday:
"Ennis ISD is deeply saddened at the sudden passing of two of our students this past weekend in an automobile accident. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of these children at this very difficult time.
"The loss of a student is always difficult and can generate a high level of anxiety and distress within their classmates and the school staff. During this time, as the school community processes this tragic news and copes with grief, the school district will be providing counseling and support services to all affected students and staff for as long as necessary.
"Again, please pray for this family, who also lost their father in the crash, along with the family of Bardwell Police Chief Michael Spurgeon and his volunteer firefighter son, Michael Spurgeon, Jr., who perished as well."
The investigation is still ongoing.
This is an ongoing story and will be updated.
