WOODSTOCK, AL — Brandon L. Seagle, a 37‑year‑old man from West Blocton, died early Tuesday morning in a head‑on collision on a rural county road in Bibb County. The crash on Bibb County Road 9 near Blue Pond Road happened at about 8:45 a.m. on March 10. Seagle was driving a 2013 Honda Accord when it collided with a 2022 Jeep Cherokee coming from the opposite direction.
First responders pronounced Seagle dead at the scene. State troopers said he was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. The driver of the Jeep Cherokee, also from West Blocton, survived and was taken to Bibb Medical Center with injuries that are being treated. Troopers with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s Highway Patrol Division are still investigating what caused the cars to collide.
The stretch of Bibb County Road 9 where the wreck happened is a two‑lane rural road, lined by woods and open land. Locals know it as a place where traffic can move fast and where there are few safety barriers between opposing lanes of travel. Rural roads like this one see a high share of fatal crashes in Alabama, even though they carry less overall traffic than larger highways.
Friends and neighbors described Seagle as someone who enjoyed life and was well known in the tight‑knit West Blocton community. People in the area say his death is the kind of sudden loss that leaves a gap in the routines of daily life, from the local market to neighborhood gatherings.
The accident also renewed conversations about seat belt safety in Alabama. Authorities have reminded drivers that seat belts reduce the chance of dying in a crash and that state law allows police to stop and ticket someone solely for not wearing one. Safety advocates say a seat belt can make the difference between life and death in high‑impact collisions.
There have been efforts in recent years to improve rural road safety in the region, but local residents worry that without more physical improvements or better awareness, these kinds of crashes will continue. Traffic investigators continue their work, gathering details that may explain what happened in the moments before the collision.
Anyone with information about this crash is urged to contact the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s Highway Patrol Division.
