By Billy Davis and John Howell Sr.

A one-vehicle accident claimed the life of a Batesville resident Wednesday night.

Nick Woods, 26, was pronounced dead on the scene after the automobile he was driving struck a tree, said Panola County coroner Gracie Grant-Gulledge.

The accident happened about 7:30 p.m. along Highway 51 North just north of Ballentine Road.

Woods had spent the last five months in New Mexico and had recently returned home to seek a construction job. He had found a job in Memphis the day before his death.

“He was so happy he found a job close to home,” said a cousin, Janet Avery Roberson.

Visitation will be today from 5 to 8 p.m. at Dickins Funeral Home with services 2 p.m. Saturday at the funeral home’s chapel.

Interment will follow at the Batesville Magnolia Cemetery. Dickins Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Woods is survived by his wife, Amy Putman Woods; his mother, Anita Avery; and father, Charles “Bubba” Woods, all of Batesville.

Other survivors include his sister, Abby Coleman of Sardis, and his grandmothers, Elizabeth Avery and Clemmie Woods, both of Batesville.