A Ford Taurus station wagon crossed the middle line on FM428 Monday morning and struck an oncoming moped head-on, killing its rider instantly, police said.
The victim had not been formally identified by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office on Monday afternoon.
Denton County Chief Death Investigator Troy Taylor said the office was awaiting fingerprint identification from the Texas Department of Public Safety for positive identification.
But friends and co-workers at a U.S. Post Office in Denton say the victim was Debbie Hoelscher, 55, of Pilot Point.
Jim Nix, a retired letter carrier, said Hoelscher worked as a carrier, and that she transferred to the area years ago from Lubbock. She was involved in the local letter carrier’s union, he said.
She also was about to become a grandmother, he said.
“This is a tragedy,” he said. “She will be missed.”
Lavern Holmes, secretary to the postmaster, said she was asked to check when Hoelscher didn’t show up for work Monday morning.
“It was very unusual for her to be late. She was very prompt,” Holmes said. “I felt like something was wrong.”
Hoelscher had worked for the Postal Service since 1980 and came to Denton in 1987, Holmes said. Her co-workers were shocked to learn that Hoelscher had been killed.
“She was on her way to work and just didn’t make it,” Holmes said. “It’s hard to realize that she won’t be back.”
Denton police Officer Orlando Hinojosa said the accident happened about 6:50 a.m. about a mile north of the Denton water park.
The accident was on a straightaway, he said, and an investigation was continuing into why the station wagon crossed the middle line.
Hinojosa said Hoelscher was wearing a helmet. The station wagon driver was male and he had a male passenger, the officer said. They were unhurt.
The highway was closed to traffic for four hours between the water park and Elm Bottom Circle, he said.
DONNA FIELDER can be reached at 940-566-6885. Her e-mail address is dfielder@dentonrc.com .
