2 teens, woman arrested after fatal 4-vehicle crash near airport.

Date: 07/23/2012
Time: Around 3:00 P.M.
Location: Columbia, South Carolina
Vehicle(s) Involved: Ford Thunderbird, Ford Ranger, Dodge Ram, Mail truck

By Jason Old - WISTV

"Two teenagers and a 32-year-old woman have been arrested in connection with a deadly crash in Lexington County.

The accident, involving four cars, happened Monday afternoon on Highway 302 near the Columbia Metropolitan Airport.

According to the highway patrol, 19-year-old Sheldon Dubois of Cayce was driving with a suspended license when he lost control of a black pickup truck and crashed into three other vehicles, including a U.S. Postal Service truck.

Dubois is facing several charges, including reckless homicide.

Lexington County Coroner Harry Harman said 64-year-old (censored) of Lexington was traveling in a white pickup truck when he was hit by Dubois. Mitchell was not wearing a seatbelt and was pronounced dead at the scene, the coroner said.

Two others were hospitalized.

Troopers say a 17-year-old passenger in Dubois' truck is also being charged with leaving the scene of crime.

According to highway patrol, 32-year-old Sharon Ellsworth, who was not at the scene of the accident, is also being charged for allowing Dubois to drive the vehicle.

Investigators are still trying to determine Ellsworth's relationship with the two teens."

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Greyhound crash.

Date: 04/27/2009
Time: Around 6:55 A.M.
Location: Near Riverside, Alabama
Vehicle(s) Involved: Bus

By Rick Zerby - AL.com

"Emergency personnel at the crash site. According to Public Information Officer Charles Dysart a Greyhound bus that departed from Atlanta Georgia heading towards Jackson Mississippi crashed on I-20 West bound, near exit 166. The driver's side front tire blew causing the driver to loose control of the bus. It then hit the guard rail and slammed into the bridge. 21 of the 32 passengers onboard were injured, but no life threatening injuries or fatalities occurred. The crash occurred about 6:55 am. Birmingham News Photo/Emma Tannenbaum"

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Victim identified in fatal wreck on Alabama 79 in Birmingham.

Date: 06/11/2012
Time: Around 5:25 A.M.
Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Vehicle(s) Involved: Mercury, semi truck(not shown)

By Sherrel Stewart - The Birmingham News

"BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- A man killed this morning in a crash this morning on Alabama 79 in northeast Birmingham has been identified.
The Jefferson County Coroner's Office identified the victim as 41-year-old (censored) of Pinson.
The wreck happened about 5:25 a.m. when a gray, 1990s model Mercury sedan Moreland was driving collided with a flatbed 18-wheeler and caught fire.
Early morning rush hour traffic on Alabama 79, also known as Pinson Valley Parkway, was rerouted for a couple of hours through the Valley East Industrial Park."

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HP: 87-year-old had heart attack just before double-fatal wreck.

Date: 05/09/2012
Time: Around 2:00 P.M.
Location: Gilbert, South Carolina
Vehicle(s) Involved: Ford Focus, Ford Mustang, Chevy Silverado

By Jason Old - WISTV10

"GILBERT, SC (WIS) - An elderly man had a heart attack causing him to run through a stop sign Wednesday afternoon and cause a three-vehicle accident that took the lives of two people, including himself, according to the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
The accident happened a little after 2 p.m. at the intersection of Highway 378 and Shore Road near Lake Murray. Highway 378 was closed for about 2 hours while crews investigated the accident and cleared the scene.
The Highway Patrol said the 87-year-old driver of a 2009 Ford Focus, identified by the Lexington County Coroner's office as (censored), failed to stop at the stop sign on Shore Road at 378 and crashed into a pickup truck. The collision forced the pickup into the eastbound lanes of 378 where it was hit by a Ford Mustang.
According to the Highway Patrol, three people were taken to the hospital. The 62-year-old  driver of the pickup, (censored)., was airlifted with serious injuries, and later pronounced dead at the hospital. Butzich was taken to Lexington Medical Center by ambulance and later pronounced dead.
"I was shocked and saddened to hear the news of Ed's death," said Pastor Jeff Kersey of Hartung.  
He said Hartung was a quiet, humble leader at Mount Horeb United Methodist Church in Lexington. Hartung was active with the church's ramp ministry.
 Ed and his team regularly built ramps for the elderly and the handicapped in the community.
"Just yesterday morning Ed was out constructing a ramp for one of our elderly members," said Kersey.  "Even on the day he died he was out serving."
"Why did someone like Ed have to die this way?" asked Kersey.  "We don't know the answer until we step into eternity ourselves. We should be asking what can God do with this how will he use his life to make a difference in our world."
The driver of the Mustang was also taken to Lexington Medical Center by ambulance. She was treated for minor injuries and released.
The accident is being investigated by the Highway Patrol."

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Highway 302 all clear following three-car accident.

Date: 04/26/2012
Time: Morning
Location: West Columbia, South Carolina
Vehicle(s) Involved: Jeep Wrangler, Dodge Dakota

By Jeremy Turnage - WISTV10

"WEST COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) -
Highway 302 and Old Dunbar Road are clear following a three-car collision early Thursday morning.
According to the South Carolina Highway Patrol, two cars were travelling east on Highway 302 when a third car travelling west crossed the center line, causing the accident.
One person was sent to Palmetto Health Richland with injuries.
The Highway Patrol is continuing to investigate the incident and trying to determine if any charges will be filed."

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Highway Patrol: Man thrown from van, killed in accident.

Date: 07/20/2012
Time: Morning
Location: Columbia, South Carolina
Vehicle(s) Involved: Chevy Astro

By Randy Johnson - WISTV10

"COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - A Columbia man is dead after his van hit a pole and overturned Friday morning.
The South Carolina Highway Patrol says a 56-year-old man was driving a 1974 Chevy van on Monticello road when he ran off the right side of the road.
Troopers said the van hit a pole and overturned.
The man was not wearing a seatbelt and was ejected from the van according to the Highway Patrol. They say he died on the scene."

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NHTSA: Traffic deaths shoot up 13.5 percent.

By 9WSYR.com

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Traffic deaths soared 13.5 percent in the first quarter of the year compared to the same period last year, and the number of deaths per miles driven also rose significantly, according to preliminary government estimates released Friday.

An estimated 7,630 people died in motor vehicle crashes in the first three months of 2012, up from 6,720 deaths in the first quarter of last year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said. It's not unusual for preliminary estimates to change, but revisions usually don't vary significantly.

If the estimate holds true, it would be the second largest year-to-year quarterly increase since the government began recording traffic fatalities in 1975. It would also run counter to historic declines in deaths over the past four years. In May, the safety administration, citing preliminary estimates, said total traffic deaths last year were the lowest in six decades, and the rate of deaths per miles driven was lower than at any time since 1921.

That rate was back up in the first quarter of this year at 1.1 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled compared to .98 fatalities in the first three months of 2011. Less dramatically, the number of miles driven by motorists also increased by 1.4 percent during the period.

The safety administration didn't offer any explanation for why fatalities would have risen so markedly, but safety experts said a recovering economy and unusually mild winter may have been a factor. People drive more in good weather, particularly motorcyclists, and when the economy is thriving.

"We are disappointed in the news, but not particularly surprised," Barbara Harsha, executive director of the Governors Highway Safety Association, said. "Unprecedented gains have been made since 2006 in reducing traffic deaths. So, from that low baseline, an increase is not unexpected."

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Sacramento California Corvette Crash Claims One Life.

Date: 11/07/2011
Time: Around 9:45 A.M.
Location: Sacramento, California
Vehicle(s) Involved: Chevy Corvette, Semi truck

By Lauren Hargrove

"Following a fatal car crash in Sacramento, California, Interstate 5 was shut down for two hours while officers and emergency personnel pieced together the circumstances of the crash. KCRA reported that black Corvette had collided with a semi-truck near the Garden Highway off-ramp. Initial reports stated that the two people in the Corvette were transported to local hospitals with serious injuries. After viewing the graphic pictures on the KCRA website it is hard to imagine that anyone could have survived the collision after seeing what remained of the Corvette. According to the Sacramento Bee, the female passenger succumbed to injuries sustained during the crash. (censored), 65, of Elk Grove, California died after the Monday November 7, 2011 collision.

According to others to who witnessed the accident, the driver of the Corvette was in the far left lane when the car was spotted weaving in the lane. Shortly after weaving in and out of the lane, the driver lost control of the car causing it to clip a passenger car before slamming into the side of the semi-truck. After the Corvette slammed into the large truck it went off the embankment near the Garden Highway exit. Currently, there are no reports on the condition of driver or what may have caused him or her to lose control of the car that fateful morning. Fortunately, the occupants of the other car and semi-truck were not physically injured during the traumatic crash."

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Driver Critical After Bypass Wreck.

Date: 07/19/2012
Time: Around 2:00 P.M.
Location: Newtown, Pennsylvania
Vehicle(s) Involved: School bus, delivery truck

By Tom Sofield - Newtown Patch

"The 75-year-old driver of the school bus that slammed into the back of a furniture delivery truck on the Newtown Bypass Thursday afternoon remains in critical condition at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, according to a release from Newtown authorities.
The driver, Janet Callan, of Doylestown, was flown by PennStar medical helicopter to Philadelphia after a nearly 20-minute extrication by more than a dozen firefighters following the crash.
The only passenger on the bus was Eleanor Weaver, 68, of Warminster. She suffered injuries and was transported to St. Mary Medical Center by ground ambulance and was released shortly after, police said.
No students were on the bus, which was operated by First Student.
Witnesses to the wreck told investigating officers that the yellow bus traveled onto the shoulder of roadway for a several yards before it struck the back of the truck. A detective at the scene Thursday told Patch the bus had scraped the guard rail along the eastbound shoulder in the moments before the crash.
The delivery truck, which was being leased by Mealey’s Furniture in Falls Township and was owned by Freedom International Trucks, was pulled over on the side of the Bypass after a check engine light came on, police said. The 29-year-old delivery truck passenger said at the scene that the crash, which happened approximately three minutes after the box truck pulled over, made a loud “boom.”
The two men who were working for Mealey’s were not injured.
Officers conducted an inspection of the truck and found no mechanical problems that played a role in the crash. The inspection of the bus is on-going, police said.
Firefighters and EMTs from Northampton and Wrightstown assisted Newtown authorities with the rescue operation.
Police did not comment on whether medical issues contributed to Callan losing control of the bus right before the crash."

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