Two children dead following crash in eastern Marion County
Two children have died following a single-vehicle crash that occurred late Monday night in eastern Marion County.
Lt. Lance S. Schearer of the Marion Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol reported that troopers and emergency medical crews were dispatched to the junction of Whetstone River Road North and Roberts Road in Claridon Township at 9:33 p.m. on Monday after receiving a call about a vehicle that crashed in a pond at that location. Upon arrival, five people were discovered in the vehicle - an adult female and four juveniles.
According to the patrol's press release, Cassandra Bautista, age 30, Caledonia, was driving a 2009 Honda Odyssey southbound on Whetstone River Road North and went through the intersection with Roberts Road without stopping. Bautista then continued off the left side of the road where her vehicle struck a small tree and an embankment. The vehicle went airborne and landed on the bank of a pond and then rolled into the pond, according to the press release.
Bautista and the four children - ages nine, seven, four, and two - were trapped in the water-filled vehicle, Lt. Shearer said. Deputies, troopers, fire personnel, and bystanders assisted with removing the five victims trapped inside the vehicle and started life saving efforts.
Lt. Shearer said Bautista and her children were taken to OhioHealth Marion General Hospital. The two-year-old child was pronounced deceased at Marion General Hospital. The four-year-old was later pronounced deceased after being transported to Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus. The other three occupants were all listed in critical condition.
All occupants had their seatbelts on and two were in booster seats. The crash remains under investigation, Lt. Shearer said.
Marion County Sheriff Matt Bayles said deputies from his office and firefighters from First Consolidated Fire District discovered the vehicle submerged in the pond with only the roof above the surface and began rescue operations. According to a press release Sheriff Bayles issued Tuesday morning, a firefighter from First Consolidated used a paddleboard that had been on the shore to go out to the van and crawled on top of it. The firefighter then used a baseball bat to shatter one of the windows on the van to try to extricate the people from the van.
Deputies on the scene also entered the water and assisted the firefighter in removing three victims from the vehicle. A chain was attached to the vehicle and a fire department vehicle was used to pull the vehicle closer to the shore at which time the remaining two victims could be reached and taken out of the vehicle.
“This is an unthinkable tragedy that happened last night,” Sheriff Bayles said. "It is every first responder’s nightmare scenario when they pull up on a scene such as this one. Lt. Brian Stafford and Chief Clint Canterbury of First Consolidated, Deputies Jarrod Kidwell and Jacob Johnson and Lt. Arick Miller of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office - without their bravery of going into the icy waters to get these people out, this would have ended with all five having perished. The medics and firefighters on scene and the doctors and nurses at Marion General Hospital that workedfeverishly on these victims, their work and dedication were outstanding.
"Our dispatchers worked hard to find out where the victims were and tried to communicate with them on the 911 calls. To be on the other end of the line and feeling helpless is a horrible feeling. Our dispatchers are second to none.”
The Ohio State Highway Patrol was assisted by Marion County Sheriff’s Office, First Consolidated, Pleasant Township, Fort Morrow, Marion Township Fire and EMS, Precision Towing, and Ron’s Towing.
Email: ecarter@gannett.com | Twitter: @AndrewACCarter
This article originally appeared on Marion Star: Two children dead following crash in eastern Marion County
