A piece of tombstone thrown from a turnpike overpass crashed through the window of a tractor-trailer rig, critically injuring the driver, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said Thursday.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper Betsy Randolph said Gerald Webb, 66, of Porum, was driving on the Cherokee Turnpike about 1 a.m. Thursday just west of Locust Grove, 50 miles east of Tulsa, when the 25 pound chunk of gray marble crashed through his windshield.
Webb was hospitalized in critical condition with a collapsed lung and hasn't been able to speak to investigators, Randolph said.
The object appears to be the base for a tombstone, she said. The letter "s'' is engraved in the marble and there is an indentation where flowers are placed.
There has been a rash of vandalism in the area, and it's possible the object might have been taken in one of these incidents, she said.
There are no suspects and no witnesses have come forward.
After the westbound truck was hit, it crossed two eastbound lanes before coming to rest on the side of the roadway.
"We are very thankful that he wasn't killed and nobody else was killed," Randolph said. "This was a horrible prank, a lethal prank and definitely a stupid one.
"We're very anxious to determine suspects and bring them to justice. They will be facing serious charges."
Webb was driving a truck for Frank Thompson Transport of El Dorado, Ark.
"It's sad that somebody would do something like that," said Larry Williams, the company's vice president for safety and public relations. "He did an amazing job of keeping the vehicle from overturning."
He said the company is offering a $25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of those responsible for the crime.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press.
