Musician Traveling 300 Miles by Wheelchair Fatally Hit in Highway Crash

Authorities say a highway crash in southeast Georgia killed an Atlanta musician traveling 300 miles by wheelchair to raise awareness for people with disabilities.

The Georgia State Patrol says 59-year-old Frank Barham, a jazz harmonica player, died Wednesday while steering his wheelchair along Highway 21 in Screven County. Troopers say a tractor-trailer slammed into the back of an escort van following Barham. The impact hurled the van into Barham's wheelchair.

The van's driver, identified as Margaret Kargbo of Atlanta, was also killed and a passenger, Carrie Johnson of Villa Rica, was airlifted to Doctor's Hospital in Augusta.

According to his website, Barham, whose legs were paralyzed in car crash decades ago, left Atlanta on May 11 to travel by wheelchair to Savannah, where a charity concert had been planned Saturday.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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