Authorities have now identified the man whose body was recovered from a truck that left the bridge on Meighan Boulevard then plunged into the Coosa River Sunday afternoon.  The victim has been identified as 56 year old Bobby Lee Benefield of Ball Play in Etowah County

Witnesses report that the 2000 Chevy Silverado was traveling eastbound on the bridge, and suddenly crossed two lanes of on-coming traffic before crashing through the guardrail then going off the bridge.

The incident occurred at around 2:00pm and recovery efforts began immediately, with that initial operation continuing until 8:00 that night.  The truck was eventually located in roughly 20 feet of water and was upside down when found by divers. 

It remains unclear at this point whether anyone else was in the vehicle with Benefield – and for the time being, search operations will continue.

Authorities have not released any information regarding a possible cause for the accident.

Anyone with information regarding the crash or who may have seen Benefield shortly prior to the incident is encouraged to contact the Gadsden Police Department Traffic Investigator Sam Lowe at (256) 549-4631.

(al.com/www.al.com)