News 10 spoke exclusively with the family of Shannon Thibodeaux, 34, of Lafayette. He was a tow truck operator for R&R Towing Company.

ST. LANDRY PARISH, La. (KLFY)-- A family is heartbroken after their loved one was killed while helping a woman with a flat tire on the side of I-49 early Wednesday morning.

News 10 spoke exclusively with the family of Shannon Thibodeaux, 34, of Lafayette. He was a tow truck operator for R&R Towing Company.

“That was my first-born child. He's been taken from me,” Troy Thibodeaux, the father of Shannon, cried.

Thibodeaux said he was informed about his son Wednesday morning after waking up to a loud banging on his door from State Police.

“I saw state police at my back door; walked out and he asked me my name and I told him.  He asked me about my son's name and if he worked for an R&R towing company and I said, please don't tell me he’s gone because I've been through this because I'm a volunteer firefighter and a former police officer and he told me my son was in a serious accident and he didn’t make it through,” Thibodeaux said holding on strong to contain his emotions.

“The tow truck operator stopped assisting a motorist with a flat tire while they were outside of the vehicle fixing that tire," Trooper Thomas Gossen with Louisiana State Police said. "A third vehicle came drifting off the roadway and struck both the disabled vehicle and the tow truck on the shoulder of the roadway. Upon doing so, the tow truck operator was killed. A passenger in that disabled vehicle was killed and several other passengers in the disabled vehicle were also injured.”

“It's heartbreaking when you have to call your grandson and tell him that his dad's not coming home because he was killed by somebody who would pay attention to his surroundings on the road,” Thibodeaux said.

Ryan Mouton, who is a first cousin of Shannon, said when he heard the news he “felt bad.”

“I thought my heart was about to come out of my chest and the only thing I could do was go be with my family and try to comfort my family. Try to be the strong one in the family,” Mouton said.

Mouton remembers Shannon being a safe worker. A loving father and very dependable.

“It's just very hard to lose a loved one and to get that call that could have been anybody. It could have been me. It could have been anybody driving on the street but to get that call like that, it's never good to get it. But you just got to be there for the family. You just gotta make sure that the kids grow up strong and just show the family that you're strong for them,” Mouton said.

In light of the crash, Gossen reminds people of the move-over law.

“Unfortunately, this happens, but it happens more often than we think because these operators are standing on the side of the roadway in such close proximity to the road and that is the number one reason why that move-over law was put into place,” he said. “It requires all motorists on a two-lane roadway to move over. When you have two lanes that allow you to move over, you must do so. If you can't move over, the law states that you have to slow down to a reasonably safe speed.”

Gossen adds when people are working inches off of the roadway and displaying flashing lights that's a notification to oncoming vehicles that there is an emergency on the side of the road.

Gossen also mentioned the fatal crash where three members of Southern University’s marching band were killed in a crash with an 18-wheeler while trying to change a flat tire and were killed by the truck. He stressed it can be a private vehicle, tow operators, telephone companies, utility workers and construction workers.

“It's all emergency vehicles displaying emergency lighting," Gossen said. "The whole purpose of it is to draw attention to those people on the side of the roadway. Slow down, move over, and be more aware."

It’s all about keeping these guys safe and alive,” he said.

Troop I has investigated 12 fatal crashes resulting in 13 deaths in 2024. Gossen said texting and driving is a huge factor in most crashes. Also seatbelt usage, and impairment but mostly distractions with cell phones.

“If we can minimize the distractions in that vehicle by putting that phone down, that goes a long way to saving lives. I think while it's still under investigation, that may play out as a factor in this crash as well. That's again, still to be known, but unfortunately, we have situations like this where the one thing I hope for is that we can learn from others' mistakes and so we don't have this situation repeated,” he said.

“Take it from a parent who just lost his child. I don't want anybody to go through that,” Thibodeaux said. “Please slow down and move over for emergency vehicles. You never know it might be your family on the side of the road that needs help. You never know.”

R&R Towing company had set up a GoFundMe account to help with funeral expenses and to support the two teenage sons Shannon leaves behind.

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