East HS student killed, 3 other teens hurt in car crash Sunday night
Sep. 5—CHEYENNE — One student from East High School was killed, and three other teenagers from East were seriously hurt, in a single-vehicle accident Sunday night, according to local authorities.
The incident reportedly occurred at around 10:30 p.m. Sunday on East Lincolnway, just in front of the McDonald's that is located at 2535 East Lincolnway. As the 16-year-old driver of a Ford Taurus was apparently speeding and also "switching lanes" on the street, "he spun out of control into the parking lot" of the McDonald's, the Cheyenne Police Department's spokesperson said by phone Monday.
The driver was pronounced dead at the scene, according to local officials, including the CPD's spokesperson Alexandra Farkas. The body of the teenager is now at the coroner's office, the Laramie County coroner, Rebecca Reid, said by phone.
The other three local teens who were in the car at the time of the crash "were able to exit the vehicle" and were later taken by ambulance to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center, Farkas reported. "All of their injuries were considered serious." There was no immediate update from CRMC on those kids' medical conditions.
Although there were other motorists in the area at the time of the incident, it was a single-vehicle crash, Farkas recounted in her phone interview. It is not thought that alcohol or drugs were involved, she said. "They are not suspected at this time, just speed," as the vehicle was apparently exceeding the speed limit, she added.
As is typical, the Laramie County coroner's office "will determine cause of death," Reid said. "We do not have a time frame." The names of all four teens involved in the car crash were not immediately released, in keeping with a heightened standard of privacy for those under the age of 18. The Wyoming Tribune Eagle's formal public records requests to the police and coroner were rejected, due to the ongoing investigation.
It appears the Ford Taurus "was traveling east on Lincolnway at a high rate of speed and attempted to cross lanes," CPD noted in its announcement early Monday afternoon. "The driver then lost control of the vehicle and entered the McDonald's parking lot, striking a curb and rolling the vehicle. The crash ended as the Taurus landed on a handicap parking pillar. The driver was ejected during the incident."
A car in the parking lot of the McDonald's was hit by the Taurus with the teens inside, CPD's Farkas said by phone. In a later email to the WTE she noted the car that was hit in the parking lot was parked and unoccupied at the time of the collision. The fast-food restaurant was open at the time, employees there noted when contacted by the WTE on Monday.
The car crash in the parking lot "was pretty bad," said a manager of the McDonald's, who declined to give his name while answering some questions briefly by phone. "We're trying to help the police however we can."
Corporate spokespeople for the McDonald's restaurant chain didn't answer questions. Representatives of Laramie County School District 1 and of East High School had no comment.
Although nearby vehicles weren't involved in the crash itself, their occupants called police and stayed at the scene, Farkas said. Deputies from the Laramie County Sheriff's Office also assisted at the site, in addition to Cheyenne Fire Rescue and AMR.
CFR sent two fire engines and a battalion chief to the scene, according to Cheyenne Fire commander Andrew Dykshorn. "They were there, and they assisted PD with their investigation," Dykshorn said of his agency's personnel helping the police department.
As CPD noted in its announcement, "due to the severity of the crash, the Cheyenne Police Department's Major Crash Unit responded to take over the investigation." Many of the details relayed by the police are preliminary, the department noted:
"Police are still working to determine the factors that led up to the crash. This case remains under investigation."
