The small Texas town of Bardwell is trying to cope with a great loss. On Sunday, police chief Michael Spurgeon Sr. and his son, Michael Spurgeon Jr. died in a head-on crash on Highway 34, less than two miles outside of Bardwell. In the other car, a family of three -- Jose Munoz and his two young children -- also died.
"It's not understandable," said Elsa Jimenez, Munoz's boss. "It's tragic. It's horrific. You can't explain it."
According to the Texas Highway Patrol, Munoz, 31, was driving west Sunday at about 10:15 a.m. in a 2012 Dodge pickup when he crossed over the center line, into oncoming traffic. His truck and hit the 67-year old Spurgeon's Ford Crown Victoria head-on.
It will take investigators time to piece together the deadly crash to figure out how and why it happened on a clear, sunny day.
"He was one of us," Bardwell Mayor J.B. Lowry Jr. said. "We all got kind of knocked off our feet."
Spurgeon wasn't just the police chief, he was the only police officer in town. His son was a member of the volunteer fire department, which posted on its Facebook page, "Please keep our department, our community and the additional affected families in your prayers."
Funeral services for Michael Spurgeon Sr. and Michael Spurgeon Jr. will be held Monday at 12 p.m. at Plymouth Park Methodist Church in Irving. The church is located at 1615 Airport Freeway, Irving, TX 75062.
