GREENVILLE, S.C. (Oct. 15, 2002) — The South Carolina Highway Patrol is investigating the role a Uniroyal Laredo tire might have played in a fatal crash involving a Greenville Hospital System ambulance.
The tire, on the left rear of the ambulance, allegedly suffered a tread separation, causing the driver to lose control.
Birdie Bell Logan, an 88-year-old woman on route to the hospital with respiratory problems, died in the crash. The Highway Patrol has not formally contacted Greenville-based Michelin North America Inc., the manufacturer of the tire, so the company doesn't even know the size or tread design of the tire, a Michelin spokeswoman said.
"There are many potential causes for a tread separation or tread detachment, and most are use- or abuse-related," she said in a prepared statement.