City of Huntsville to pay over $256K to family of Public Works employee killed in July crash

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — The City of Huntsville is set to pay the family of a Public Works employee over $256,000 after he was killed in a crash involving a City vehicle in July.

In the City Council’s August 28 meeting, the council approved the workers’ compensation claim of Mary Hornbuckle, Hank Hornbuckle’s late wife.

The compensation claim was worth $256,500, according to City documents.

News 19 reached out to the City to learn more about the settlement. You can read the full statement below:

“The City of Huntsville has reached an agreement with the widow of Hank Hornbuckle to settle her claim arising out of the tragic motor vehicle accident of July 1, 2025, in which Mr. Hornbuckle died, and two other City employees were seriously injured.  The settlement received Council approval on Aug. 28, 2025. 

The agreement was reached under the provisions of Alabama’s Workers’ Compensation Act. It was a priority of the City to promptly reach a resolution of the claim to address the financial needs of the widow arising out of the untimely loss of her husband. While no monetary sum would be sufficient to offset the loss she has experienced, the proposed settlement is responsive to the widow’s needs and fair to the City of Huntsville, as well.”
The City of Huntsville

Hank Hornbuckle was involved in a single-vehicle wreck on July 1 with other City employees. He was the only one to lose his life due to the wreck.

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said the wreck occurred on U.S. 231 near Arab when the Chevrolet Tahoe, in which Hank Hornbuckle was a passenger, left the roadway, overturned, hit a ditch, and then a tree.

ALEA said Huntsville Public Works Director Christopher McNeese was driving the vehicle at the time of the wreck. The agency said McNeese was injured and taken to Huntsville Hospital. Donal Dowdy, another city employee, was also injured and taken to the hospital.

News 19 obtained the ALEA crash report from the deadly wreck, which says McNeese drove “too fast for the heavy rainfall and wet roadways as well as limited visibility due to the rain.”

ALEA’s crash report says that as the vehicle started going down the road, it traveled through water across the roadway, hydroplaned and McNeese lost control of the vehicle.

The document says the vehicle then “began sliding out of control, crossing both the unpaved median and southbound lanes of U.S. 231,” before overturning as it slid off the embankment and hit the ditch.

During the crash, the report says that Hornbuckle was totally ejected from the vehicle and was killed.

The report said the vehicle then continued to overturn and hit a tree before finally stopping. When interviewed about the incident, McNeese told law enforcement that he “topped the hill heading north and as he started down the hill, he must have run through water, causing him to lose control of the vehicle.” The document states that he said he remembered running off the roadway, but could not provide any further details of the crash.