ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — A University of Georgia student died after being run over by a moving truck earlier this week, according to police.

About 7:35 p.m. Wednesday, officers responded to a single-vehicle crash in the 300 block of Peabody Street. According to police, George Whittenburg, a 21-year-old University of Georgia student, was standing outside the driver’s door of a parked 2018 Toyota Tundra when the vehicle began rolling backward, striking and running over him.

The truck continued in reverse, hitting an unoccupied vehicle before coming to rest after striking a tree. Whittenburg suffered visible injuries and was transported to a local hospital for treatment.

His condition deteriorated in the following days, and he died Friday.

The incident marks the first traffic fatality in Athens-Clarke County in 2026.

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