LAWRENCEBURG, TN (WSMV) -
Four people, including two teenagers, have died after two separate wrecks in Lawrence County within about six hours.
Rianna L. Watson, 17, of Leoma, TN, was driving a GMC Envoy west around 6 p.m. Wednesday when her vehicle crossed the center line and hit a box truck that was traveling east, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol
Watson died in the wreck. Her passenger, Tanna J. Pesnell, 17, of Loretto, TN, was transported by helicopter to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where she died Thursday.
The driver of the box truck was not hurt.
Classmates at Loretto High School like Ashley Perry and Joseph Reed spoke fondly of the two seniors Thursday. Both girls were popular, active in school and smart.
Friends say it was the highlight of her young life when Pesnell was voted homecoming queen last month.
"The entire Loretto family has suffered a tremendous loss. Both girls were wonderful girls," said Principal Jennifer Littleton.
The teens recently returned from a fall break trip to the beaches of the Gulf Coast.
"(Tanna) never met a stranger. She worked at Sonic, and I think Tanna will be remembered by saying, 'welcome to Sonic, how may I help you,' with that country voice. I remember those everyday blessings," Reed said.
The school is hoping to remember both girls with a memorial, they say, when the time is right.
Two killed in early morning wreck
Two people were killed in a crash early Thursday morning on Weakley Creek Road.
A Nissan ATS sedan driven by Lloyd Bentley, 28, of Lawrenceburg, TN, was traveling east on Weakley Creek Road around 12:30 a.m.
Bentley lost control of the vehicle, went off of the road and struck a tree. This caused the vehicle to overturn and eject all three people inside the car.
Bentley and a passenger, James B. Abbott, 32, of Lawrenceburg, TN, were both killed. Jennifer Branham, 33, of Lawrenceburg, TN, was injured but survived the wreck.
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Rianna L. Watson, 17, of Leoma, TN, was killed when her GMC Envoy crossed the center line and hit a box truck on Old Florence Pulaski Road.
