The Dodge Dakota didn’t just crash—it folded and twisted around a traffic pole like paper, leaving behind a devastating scene that Tulsa police described as one of the worst they’ve seen this year. The violent collision occurred around 2:10 a.m. on Saturday, October 5, at the intersection of 21st Street and Memorial Drive. According to investigators, a Jeep Wrangler and the Dodge Dakota entered the intersection from opposite directions, and one of the vehicles is believed to have run a red light.
The impact was catastrophic. The Jeep careened into a wooden utility pole, splintering it on contact, while the Dakota was destroyed instantly, scattering metal and debris across the intersection. Both men inside the Dakota were ejected from the vehicle with tremendous force. Kortlin S. Harmon, one of the passengers, was pronounced dead at the scene. The second man, who has not yet been publicly identified, was rushed to the hospital but later succumbed to his injuries.
The driver of the Jeep survived and was taken into custody for questioning. Police say impairment and speed are both possible factors, though the exact cause of the crash remains under investigation. Officers with the Tulsa Police Major Collision Investigation Unit spent hours reconstructing the scene, documenting skid marks, vehicle trajectories, and damage patterns to determine what exactly led to the fatal impact.
Residents in the area described waking to the sound of the crash, followed by sirens filling the early morning darkness. Flowers and candles now mark the site where two lives were lost in an instant—a grim reminder of the dangers of reckless driving. As detectives continue to gather evidence, the community mourns Kortlin Harmon and the second victim, both gone far too soon.
