Death takes no holiday in Chauvin

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A speeding Corvette burst into flame after striking a pickup in Chauvin Friday night, killing the driver and passenger in the sports car and killing the driver of the pickup, whose wife and two children were injured in the wreck.

Quick-thinking residents of homes along the bayouside highway sprang into action, forming a bucket brigade to douse the blaze as firefighters raced to the scene, extinguishing it before their arrival.


“In 43 years I have only seen one or two wrecks this bad, and those were wrecks that would have happened when the roads were narrow and there were no shoulders,” said Little Caillou Fire Chief Marty Thibodeaux, who worked with his firefighters for hours after cleaning up parts of the autos.

The crash was the second fatal incident to occur in Chauvin on the first day of the Memorial Day weekend. Friday afternoon a 90-year-old woman died on La. 56 near La. 58 when the car she was a back-seat passenger in wrecked into a ditch.

The latter incident occurred around 8 p.m. when, according to State Police, the 2008 Corvette driven by 52-year-old Lloyd LeCompte Jr. of Montegut, traveled south on La. Highway 56 near the Toussaint Foret Bridge “at a high rate of speed” when it crossed the center line.


It struck a 2002 Dodge Ram truck driven by 43-year-old Eugene Rodrigue of Chauvin at the point of impact was believed to be northbound in the northbound lane.

LeCompte’s late passenger was identified as 50-year-old Paul Broussard of Chauvin. Rodrigue’s wife, who sat in the front seat of the pickup, 35-year-old Desi Rodrigue, suffered broken bones and other injuries, and was transported to Terrebonne General Medical Center. The Rodrigue’s two children, ages one 16-year-old Eugene Jr. and 14-year-old Tyler, were also injured, and helped out of the truck by community members who swarmed the scene to give help.

The wreck occurred a short distance from the family’s driveway.


Witnesses told first-responders they could hear the Corvette’s gears winding out as it sped along the highway. An investigation is still being conducted, but according to witness accounts the truck had just turned from the Rodrigue residence, on the southbound side of the highway, onto the northbound lane, where the impact occurred. Various accounts indicate the possibility that LeCompte didn’t see the truck pulling into the highway at first, as his view would have been blocked by the southbound auto he was passing. When the truck appeared in the lane he had used for passing, it was too late.

Trooper First Class Jesse LaGrange, a State Police Troop C spokesman, said that impairment is suspected on the part of LeCompte, but not on the part of Rodrigue. Standard toxicology tests are still pending, LaGrange said.

A miniature Chihuahua traveling with the Rodrigue family said to be a family pet suffered injuries and after being revived by a firefighter was taken to a veterinarian but its condition could not be ascertained Saturday.


Anita Theriot, a neighbor of the Rodrigue family, was in her home when she heard what sounded like an explosion.

“It was very very loud, I can only describe it like when someone shoots a shotgun how loud it is, right at your ears, louder than if it was in home,” she said. “I ran to my front door and opened it up and I saw smoke. I grabbed my phone and called 911.”

Theriot said she often saw the Rodrigue children playing with the little dog in their yard. She described the Rodrigues as a close family. Eugene Rodrigue had recently had his hours cut at the oilfield service company where he worked. The two boys, she said, spent a lot of time, especially recently, helping around the family property cutting grass and performing other chores.


Theriot was also well-acquainted with 90-year-old Hazel Scott, who died in the earlier Chauvin wreck.

According to State Police, she was in a 2000 Mazda 626 that was traveling south on La. 56 after leaving the parking lot of the Dollar General store, driven by 86-year-old Velma DeHart.

A preliminary investigation revealed that Dehart ran off of the road to the right and entered a ditch where she struck a drainage culvert.


“Dehart received minor injuries,” said TFC LaGrange. “Her front seat passenger, 60 year old Sandra Scott of Chauvin, LA, also received minor injuries. Scott was in the right rear passenger seat.”

Impairment is not suspected as a factor, LaGrange said.

“She was just a sweet, sweet lady,” Theriot said of Scott. “One of those people that always made sure you have what you need before they do.”


State Police and other law enforcement agencies said they have extra personnel out working the highways this weekend to add an extra measure of safety during the holiday, and urged all drivers to use caution and common sense while on the roads.

Chauvin Wreck