59-year-old fatally crushed under car after jack fails, Mississippi deputies say
A Mississippi man died after being pinned under a car he was working on, deputies said.
Gary Woodman, 59, was working on the vehicle Saturday, July 19, when the jack failed, the Jones County Sheriff’s Department said in a news release. The car crushed him, trapping him underneath.
Calhoun Fire & Rescue and other emergency agencies responded to the scene, deputies said.
Crews used a “battery powered rescue spreader” to lift the car off of Woodman, who wasn’t breathing, according to the sheriff’s department. Deputies began CPR until an ambulance arrived.
The injured man was taken to a hospital in Laurel, where he was medically stabilized before being transferred to Forrest General Hospital in Hattiesburg, according to the sheriff’s department.
Woodman died from his injuries July 20, deputies said in an update.
“We pray for the family and friends of Gary Woodman during this time for unimaginable loss,” Jones County Sheriff Joe Berlin said in the release.
“It is our hope that God grants comfort and a peace beyond understanding in the difficult days ahead...”
Additional information wasn’t immediately available.
Jones County is about a 90-mile drive southeast from downtown Jackson.
This story was originally published July 23, 2025 at 4:30 PM.