A para-professional at a Burke County elementary school has passed away following a Thursday morning accident.

She is 40-year-old Shalonda Free-Gardner who worked at Blakeney Elementary School, according to Georgia accident reports.

The Burke County Sheriff’s Office said the accident happened around 7:42 a.m. at

Georgia Highway 24 and Stripp Lane.

Georgia State Patrol troopers and rescue crews joined the sheriff’s office in responding to the crash.

GSP said investigations showed that Free-Gardner was going west on State Route 24 when the accident occurred. She was driving a black Honda and a green Saturn struck the back of her vehicle.

The impact resulted in her car going into the opposing lane and she was struck a second time, this time by an SUV. 

All of the drivers involved in the collision were taken to Burke Medical Hospital for treatment. Free-Gardner did not survive.

The names of the other two people were not released in accident reports.

The specialized collision reconstruction team of the Georgia State Patrol responded to the scene. Highway 24 and Thompson Bridge Road were closed to traffic in the interim.

The Burke County Sheriff’s Office expressed condolences to Free-Gardner’s community and the school system.

Meanwhile, the school district said that Free-Gardner’s death had left the Burke County School fraternity deeply saddened.

In a statement, the district pointed out that the deceased cared deeply about the success and well-being of each student.

The victim’s family may be able to file a wrongful death claim for compensation with help from a car accident lawyer.

Disclaimer: The Accident News article you just read includes information obtained from numerous sources. These sources include, but are not limited to, websites and press releases from law enforcement, the county coroner, fire departments, and other news outlets. While we strive to provide readers with the most accurate information, sometimes the information received is not entirely accurate. For complete details, please refer to an official police report.

The articles published contain sensitive subject matter that may be hard to read by some. We understand that losing a loved one is hard and devastating. Accident News’s decision to share the stories is to help others who may be facing the same situations by providing appropriate resources to the general public.

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