CAMPBELL COUNTY, VIRGINIA — Appomattox County Sheriff’s Deputy Burlie W. Duvall III, 33, of Concord, was killed Thursday evening while helping at a crash scene on westbound U.S. Route 460 in Campbell County after a tractor-trailer swerved to avoid the deputies’ vehicles and struck him. He died at the scene, leaving behind a wife and three children.
Duvall and another Appomattox County deputy were returning home from training at the Central Virginia Criminal Justice Academy when they came upon an existing crash and stopped to help just after 5:30 p.m. on August 6. Both deputies positioned their vehicles in the two left lanes with emergency equipment activated. A tractor-trailer approaching the scene swerved to avoid the stopped vehicles and struck Duvall. The crash grew into an eight-vehicle chain reaction. Approximately seven other people were transported to area hospitals with injuries ranging in severity — none considered life-threatening.
Duvall’s body was transported to the Medical Examiner’s office in Roanoke following the crash. On Friday, Virginia law enforcement escorted his body back to Appomattox County.
Route 460 was closed in both directions for an extended period while the Virginia State Police Crash Reconstruction Team investigated. The road has since reopened.
Who He Was
“Deputy Burlie W. Duvall III dedicated his life to protecting this community, and he gave that life while serving others,” said Appomattox County Sheriff Robby Richardson. “His courage, selflessness, and commitment to duty will never be forgotten.”
Those who knew Duvall described him as a gentle, loving man who made everyone around him feel safe. “A selfless, compassionate, and genuinely good man, he had the biggest heart and the sweetest soul,” his GoFundMe page reads. “Those who knew him would describe him as a true teddy bear — kind, gentle, loving, and always willing to help someone in need. But above everything else, he was a family man. His wife and his children were his entire world.”
A GoFundMe has been set up to support his family at gofundme.com/f/support-for-burlie-duvalls-family.
The crash remains under investigation. No additional details have been released out of respect for the Duvall family and the ongoing investigation.
Information courtesy of Virginia State Police, Appomattox County Sheriff’s Office, and family.
📸 Image(s) used under fair use for news reporting.
