Quitman, Ga. – The sole surviving player in the Tuesday rollover crash that killed three members of the Brooks County High School football team returned home Wednesday evening.
De’Vron Whitfield, a rising junior at the south Georgia high school, had been airlifted, in critical condition, from the scene Tuesday morning and transported to Shands Hospital in Gainesville, Fla. One day later, Whitfield was released to the care of his mother, who drove him back home to a welcome of family and friends.
“He has made a very quick recovery,” said his mother, Tisha Waters-Whitfield.
The four players were on their way to a summer football practice Tuesday morning when the driver of the SUV they were in lost control. The vehicle flipped and slammed into a tree. Whitfield was ejected from the car. The other three, Jicarre Watkins, Johnie Parker and Whitfield’s brother Shawn Waters, died at the scene.
The town gathered at the school for a prayer vigil Tuesday night. Brooks County coach Maurice Freeman met with his team Wednesday morning, accompanied by several religious leaders who offered counsel and consolation.
Come back to ajc.com this weekend for a full report from Quitman.
