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Frisco man, son among nine dead in highway wreck
Mom in critical condition after 76-year-old truck driver slams into line of cars on Interstate 44
Frisco Enterprise
SuperTarget employee Randal Scott Hayes and his talkative 7-year-old son Ethan died Friday in a wreck on the Will Rogers Turnpike near the Missouri-Kansas state lines northeast of Tulsa in Oklahoma. The 38-year-old father was a South Garland graduate and worked at the store on Eldorado Parkway where his friends loved his sense of humor.
Stay-at-home mother Shelby Hayes, 35, is in critical condition. Her 55-year-old mother Cynthia Olson of Cross Roads, Texas, also died in the wreck caused by the tractor trailer. Shelby and her 38-year-old husband were going to Missouri to attend a funeral. The crash happened on Interstate 44's Will Rogers Turnpike only a few miles from where they were going. Shelby's great-grandfather died Tuesday.
Truck driver Donald Creed of Willard, Mo., was treated for injuries to his head and is in good condition in a Missouri hospital. He is 76 years old. The Oklahoma Highway Patrol said alcohol was not involved and that an investigation is under way.
"A semi coming eastbound, a tractor trailer, failed to slow for that crash and struck several vehicles. As a result of that crash, we've got eight confirmed fatality victims," said Oklahoma Highway Patrol Lt. George Brown.
Police said that Shelby was transported to Freeman Hospital in Joplin, Mo. She had to be extracted from the car after being stuck inside it for about two hours.
The cars were lined up because there had been an earlier wreck on Interstate 44, according to police. The tractor trailer slammed into three cars, which then ran into others.
"It was the worst accident I’ve ever seen,” said Robert Foreman, the owner of Junior’s Wrecker Service, told a reporter from the Tulsa World. "And I’ve been working accidents for 30 years. I’ve never seen one kill that many people before.”
The Tulsa World reports that it took three wreckers to recover some of the trapped bodies — two to lift the tractor-trailer off the ground and a third to pull cars out from beneath it.
"One car was wadded up like a ball,” Foreman said. "They all looked like they had been through a crusher, just flattened.”
He waited for officials to finish their investigation before removing the tractor-trailer from the highway. Both lanes didn’t reopen to traffic until midnight, nearly 11 hours after the crash, Foreman said.
"The size of the rescue operation was almost like a tornado or some kind of natural disaster,” police officer and paramedic Kyle Arnall told a reporter from the Tulsa World on Saturday. "We were calling in as much help as we could get.”
A 12-year-old girl from Phoenix, Ariz., survived the pile up with serious injuries but her mom and dad did not. She remains in critical condition.
"Mainly what struck me was the amount of debris everywhere," 17-year-old Jericho Malphrus told reporters from KOTV Newson6.com. "There were clothes and snacks and debris. Someone's suitcase had busted open, and a little girl's clothes were everywhere."
The following are comments from the readers.
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
In no way do they represent the view of Starlocalnews.com
Dianna wrote on Jun 28, 2009 10:07 AM:
" I never post on news stories but this is just heartbreaking. For any family members reading this...my prayers go out to you. "
one of the responders wrote on Jun 28, 2009 7:10 PM:
" We are praying for this family. This saddens our hearts when we see this in our jobs. Rest assured that EVERYTHING that could be done was done. The memory and this family will not be forgotten here ! "
mike hudson paramedic wrote on Jun 28, 2009 7:54 PM:
" when are we going to keep closer tabs on reckless 18 wheel truck drivers?? "
JM wrote on Jun 30, 2009 9:06 PM:
" Unfortunately I was on my way home from Minnesota and saw this tragic accident shortly after it happened. My two chidren were also in the car and we could not believe our eyes - it was so shocking! And now to find out that some of my Frisco neighbors were involved is just absolutely heartbreaking. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of these victims "
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