FUNSTON, Ga. —  An SUV driver was airlifted from the scene after a head-on collision with a log truck about 5 p.m. Friday.

The Georgia State Patrol declined to identify the driver, who was taken by helicopter to a hospital in Tallahassee. The trooper was attempting to get in touch with his next-of-kin before releasing his name.

The accident happened in Funston, about a quarter-mile west of Funston-Sigsbee Road on Highway 37. The highway was completely blocked by the log truck’s trailer and the burned SUV.

Colquitt County sheriff’s deputies said they had received a report of a reckless driver on Highway 37 and officers were headed toward Funston from both directions, but the accident happened before anyone could catch up with the reckless vehicle. It has not been confirmed that the SUV was the reckless vehicle the officers were seeking.

The SUV caught fire after colliding with the empty log truck. Deputies with fire extinguishers and neighbors with water hoses and trash cans filled with water put out the fire.

A sheriff’s deputy said the SUV driver was conscious and alert before the helicopter took off. 

The driver of the log truck did not appear to be injured.