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| One dead, half-dozen hurt during long weekend filled with many wrecks |
By: Darrell Todd Maurina
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Posted: Saturday, August 1, 2009 9:04 pm
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Firefighters had to extricate an occupant from a rollover Monday night.
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WAYNESVILLE/DIXON/PALACE, Mo. (Aug. 1, 2009) — Last weekend proved to be dangerous days for drivers as numerous crashes around the area led to rollovers, serious injuries, and one death.
In addition to two previously reported personal injury crashes and one rollover west of Dixon that totaled two vehicles but didn’t hurt the driver, state troopers also responded late Saturday night to a wreck on Reporter Road about a mile north of the Waynesville city limits.
According to Missouri State Highway Patrol reports, Kelly Crandon, 42, of Waynesville, had been driving a 2005 Chevrolet eastbound at 11:15 p.m. when she ran off the left side of the roadway and struck a tree, causing extensive damage to her vehicle and suffering minor injuries herself.
Crandon, who had been wearing her seat belt, was transported to St. John’s Hospital by Pulaski County Ambulance District paramedics. Her vehicle was removed by Jack’s Towing.
State troopers reported that she had no proof of insurance.
Law enforcement personnel haven’t released any report on a rollover wreck Saturday evening in front of Big Louie’s between Interstate 44 and Highway Z, but Waynesville firefighter Dan Kallman said the wreck involved a driver who lost control of his Pontiac Grand Am while driving on Highway Z and flipped it into the roadside ditch.
Kallman said St. Robert police investigated the crash in which one person was injured and transported by Pulaski County Ambulance District for treatment, but Sgt. Butch Hohman of the St. Robert Police Department was unaware of the crash. State troopers haven’t issued a report, either.
Sunday saw two more area crashes, beginning at 4:30 a.m. when Andrea M. Bedrosian, 20, of Dixon, was southbound on Highway 133 about two miles away from Dixon across the Maries County line when she crossed the centerline in her 1996 Chevrolet Beretta, overcorrected, ran off the right side of the roadway and struck a tree.
Bedrosian, who had been wearing her seat belt, totaled her vehicle but suffered only minor injuries in the crash. Dixon Ambulance District personnel transported her to Phelps County Regional Medical Center for treatment and Pro Tow removed her vehicle.
Another wreck later that day near Dixon also totaled a vehicle when Paula K. Hughes, 48, of Dixon, was northbound on Highway 28 about three miles south of Dixon, ran off the right side of the road at 2:04 p.m. in her 2000 Oldsmobile Alero, struck an embankment, went airborne, and struck another embankment.
Hughes, who had not been wearing her seat belt, was transported by Dixon Ambulance District personnel to Phelps County Regional Medical Center in Rolla for treatment. Her vehicle was removed by Pro Tow.
The worst of the wrecks happened Monday morning when Charlie J. Lacaze, 57, of Plato, was northbound on a 1982 Honda V45 motorcycle and struck a deer at 6 a.m. about a quarter-mile outside Fort Leonard Wood’s South Gate on Highway AW.
After striking the deer, Lacaze’s motorcycle started skidding across the centerline and came to rest, causing serious injuries to Lacaze.
Lacaze, who had been wearing his helmet, was flown to St. John’s Hospital in Springfield with injuries that were initially reported as being serious; his motorcycle sustained moderate damage and was removed by Jack’s Towing.
However, Lacaze’s condition deteriorated after being airlifted to the hospital and he was pronounced dead at 5:05 p.m.
Another crash later Monday night on Interstate 44 in Waynesville just east of the Exit 156 eastbound on-ramp totaled a pickup truck and injured two women in the vehicle from Richland, though a third occupant wasn’t hurt.
Waynesville firefighters, Waynesville police, state troopers and Missouri Department of Transportation personnel all responded after a tow company driver from Rothmund’s Towing who happened to be in the area saw an overturned blue GMC Sierra pickup truck and stopped to help.
According to state patrol reports, Tiffany A. Monroe, 27, had been driving her 2001 GMC pickup eastbound at 11:45 p.m. when she ran off the left side of the roadway, overcorrected, crossed the center line, and ran off the right side of the roadway. Her pickup then struck a mile marker sign and overturned, coming to rest on the driver’s side facing west.
Monroe and her passenger, Melissa E. Tabor, 33, were both transported by Pulaski County Ambulance District paramedics to Phelps County Regional Medical Center for treatment. Troopers said Monroe had been wearing her seat belt but Tabor was not wearing hers at the time of the crash.
In new information on an earlier crash, troopers issued an updated report on a July 24 wreck in which a Newburg motorcyclist, Jackie L. Morgan, 30, had initially been reported as having crossed the center line in a wreck on Highway J just across the Phelps County line about a quarter-mile south of Interstate 44.
Following additional investigation, troopers now report that Daquanna J. Snider, 57, of Waynesville, had been stopped on the northbound shoulder facing southbound in a 2004 Cadillac at 4:55 p.m. when she entered the roadway, crossed the centerline, and struck Morgan’s southbound 2003 Harley Davidson motorcycle, causing serious injuries to Morgan and minor damage to both vehicles.
Morgan, who had been wearing his helmet, was flown by LifeLine helicopter ambulance to St. John’s Hospital in Springfield for treatment. Both vehicles sustained only minor damage and were driven to a nearby residence.
State troopers also reported several unrelated arrests in the area:
• At 8:39 p.m. Sunday, troopers arrested Erica R. Klenk, 26, of Fort Leonard Wood, on charges of driving while intoxicated and of careless and imprudent driving. Klenk was transported to the Pulaski County Jail and subsequently released.
• At 12:10 p.m. Thursday, troopers arrested Andres R. Lucio, 35, of Austin, Texas, on charges of driving while intoxicated, speeding, and having no valid operator’s license. Lucio was transported to the Pulaski County Jail and subsequently released.
• At 11:12 p.m. Friday, troopers arrested Matthew R. Thomas, 26, of Sullivan, on charges of driving while intoxicated, first offense. Thomas was transported to the Pulaski County Jail and subsequently released.
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