TEEN STILL IN CRITICAL CONDITION
TWO OTHERS IN SERIOUS CONDITION
Carlisle Township – One teen is listed in critical condition while 2 others were listed as serious after the van they were riding in collided with a semi on Route 301.
Carlisle Township Firefighters were called to the scene around 11:30 this morning for a semi in a ditch. Lieutenant Randy Feakins said when he arrived he was shocked at what he saw. “When I saw the van in the yard with the semi in its side I immediately called back to the station for additional resources.”
Feakins said the impact pushed the van through two yards about 500 feet before coming to rest in the front yard of Linden Propane. “The right front passenger was trapped – the door was pushed in on her legs and pinned against the floorboard. We had to, as a last resort, have the truck driver move his truck back about a foot so we could get the hydraulic tools in there to pry the door open to get her feet out.”
A small triage area was set up just feet away from the van; Paramedics and Firefighters could be seen treating victims while others were in the background working on the others still inside of the van.
One witness, an off duty school bus driver, said she watched as the van attempted to pull out onto Route 301 right into the path of the oncoming semi. The woman, who did not want to give her name, said she quickly ran to the van to aid the children. “It breaks my heart to see things like this; they are so young I just hope that everyone will be ok. I don’t understand why she would have pulled out in front of him like that.”
Feakins said that the victims in the van were all 16 or 17 years old and none of them were able to remember the collision. “All of the victims were speaking to us and three were ambulatory. The injuries ranged from head injuries to fractures. As of right now we have one female in critical condition, one in serious condition – they were both flown from the scene. The three that left here by ambulance were non-serious but I was just told that the condition of one of the victims is deteriorating and they will probably be flown from Elyria Memorial to Cleveland shortly.”
Route 301 was shut down for about 45 minutes while two Metro LifeFlight helicopters landed to transport two of the more serious victims.
Lt. Feakins said that this intersection is no stranger to serious crashes. “What’s unique about this intersection is that it is based on two curves. You are coming around a curve to a short straight – and going around another curve with Parsons Road being a stop on either side. So your visibility is somewhat limited. The best advice is to look twice before pulling out.”
Holly Linden also knows how dangerous the intersection can be – she has lived there for 20 years and has seen many serious crashes, todays just came a little closer to her home. “I was just inside my house in the kitchen when I heard the accident. I can identify them easily because there have been so many accidents here. I ran out the front door and they were still moving across here – I saw them come through the fence and they were heading towards me, I was actually hesitant because I wasn’t sure where they were going to stop.” Linden said that once the vehicles came to rest she went to the van and was talking to the kids. “I just telling them to remain still and calm and that help was on the way.”
Linden said that the intersection doesn’t have to be a dangerous one; “If people would pay attention and look at the traffic, it’s not – but people don’t take their time and pay attention and this is what happens.”
The Ohio State Highway Patrol continues to investigate the crash. They have released the names of the victims as 17 year old Lauren Bigler (driver of van) of Columbia Station. Katie O’Brien 17, of Columbia Station. Tara Gorman 15, of Columbia Station. Kateland Kacic 15, of Wellington. Craig Lupinski 16, of LaGrange. The driver of the semi is 42 year old Tim Ingraham of West Salem.
To see photos from the scene: CLICK HERE – For best viewing, click the SLIDESHOW feature button located on the top right corner of the photo page.
Carlisle Township – One teen is listed in critical condition while 2 others were listed as serious after the van they were riding in collided with a semi on Route 301.
Carlisle Township Firefighters were called to the scene around 11:30 this morning for a semi in a ditch. Lieutenant Randy Feakins said when he arrived he was shocked at what he saw. “When I saw the van in the yard with the semi in its side I immediately called back to the station for additional resources.”
Feakins said the impact pushed the van through two yards about 500 feet before coming to rest in the front yard of Linden Propane. “The right front passenger was trapped – the door was pushed in on her legs and pinned against the floorboard. We had to, as a last resort, have the truck driver move his truck back about a foot so we could get the hydraulic tools in there to pry the door open to get her feet out.”
A small triage area was set up just feet away from the van; Paramedics and Firefighters could be seen treating victims while others were in the background working on the others still inside of the van.
One witness, an off duty school bus driver, said she watched as the van attempted to pull out onto Route 301 right into the path of the oncoming semi. The woman, who did not want to give her name, said she quickly ran to the van to aid the children. “It breaks my heart to see things like this; they are so young I just hope that everyone will be ok. I don’t understand why she would have pulled out in front of him like that.”Feakins said that the victims in the van were all 16 or 17 years old and none of them were able to remember the collision. “All of the victims were speaking to us and three were ambulatory. The injuries ranged from head injuries to fractures. As of right now we have one female in critical condition, one in serious condition – they were both flown from the scene. The three that left here by ambulance were non-serious but I was just told that the condition of one of the victims is deteriorating and they will probably be flown from Elyria Memorial to Cleveland shortly.”
Route 301 was shut down for about 45 minutes while two Metro LifeFlight helicopters landed to transport two of the more serious victims.Lt. Feakins said that this intersection is no stranger to serious crashes. “What’s unique about this intersection is that it is based on two curves. You are coming around a curve to a short straight – and going around another curve with Parsons Road being a stop on either side. So your visibility is somewhat limited. The best advice is to look twice before pulling out.”
Holly Linden also knows how dangerous the intersection can be – she has lived there for 20 years and has seen many serious crashes, todays just came a little closer to her home. “I was just inside my house in the kitchen when I heard the accident. I can identify them easily because there have been so many accidents here. I ran out the front door and they were still moving across here – I saw them come through the fence and they were heading towards me, I was actually hesitant because I wasn’t sure where they were going to stop.” Linden said that once the vehicles came to rest she went to the van and was talking to the kids. “I just telling them to remain still and calm and that help was on the way.” Linden said that the intersection doesn’t have to be a dangerous one; “If people would pay attention and look at the traffic, it’s not – but people don’t take their time and pay attention and this is what happens.”
The Ohio State Highway Patrol continues to investigate the crash. They have released the names of the victims as 17 year old Lauren Bigler (driver of van) of Columbia Station. Katie O’Brien 17, of Columbia Station. Tara Gorman 15, of Columbia Station. Kateland Kacic 15, of Wellington. Craig Lupinski 16, of LaGrange. The driver of the semi is 42 year old Tim Ingraham of West Salem.
To see photos from the scene: CLICK HERE – For best viewing, click the SLIDESHOW feature button located on the top right corner of the photo page.
posted by TMC NEWS at 5:52 PM
9 Comments:
Again TMCnews comes through with the story and great pictures.
Another VERY BAD intersection I travel it through it everyday. Prayers to those involved. J.Castle
EFD Engine Co. 3
Lorain Blvd. @ Bell
My thoughts and prayers are with the teenagers and their families.
I hope that they all are ok and suffer no permanent injuries from this accident. Patsy
Please keep the O'Brien family in your thoughts & prayers, as Katie is still in critical condition.
For anyone who missed it, Fox8 news was using pictures from TMCNews on their coverage of this story (pictures showed "courtesy of tmcnews,net). Good job TMCNews in leading the coverage on this accident.
My heart goes out the the families of the children involved in this accident. My husband is a former truck driver for Ron Burge and they take every precaution to try and avoid these types of things. Our prayers are with the families and also Tim, the semi driver.
I hope TMC will be able to keep us updated with the conditions of the teens. I also wanted to say, EXCELLENT job on the photojournalism. And I mean excellent!!!!!
I though if you were under 18 you could only have one minor in your car or did that law never pass?
Just an update...
Kaitie O'Brien is still in Metro and is recovering. We are hoping to have her home by the 4th of July!
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