Monday, May 28, 2007
Three crashes claim eight lives; Salem, Vinton residents among dead
A crash this morning on I-81 near Salem killed four; Sunday's wreck in Bedford, which killed one person immediately, claimed more victims; a doctor was hit Saturday while bicycling
UPDATED 8:22 p.m.
An early-morning swerve to avoid a deer on Interstate 81 left four family members dead and others injured, state police said today. The one-vehicle crash doubled the death toll of the region's deadliest holiday weekend in years.
Also, police have identified three people who died after a Sunday crash in Bedford County: Justin Brooks, 18, of Salem; his brother Josh Serreno, 24, of Vinton; and Jason Frank Higgins, 68, also of Vinton.
Each day of the Roanoke Valley's Memorial Day weekend has brought a fatal traffic accident.
"The last couple days have been really difficult," Virginia State Police Sgt. Bob Carpentieri said. "... People need to wear seat belts."
A crash at around 2:25 this morning claimed Blanca Castillo, 50, Gabriel Castillo, 51, Gamil Castillo, 31, and Javier Castillo, 10, all of Dalton, Ga. They were among nine people in a 2001 Cheverolet Suburban that swerved and ran off the left side of the southbound interstate near the 137.9 mile marker. The vehicle over-corrected and ran off the right side, then overturned.
The Castillos were flung from the vehicle. The older members of the family died at the scene, and Javier died later at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital.
State police Sgt. Jerry Smith said none of the victims were wearing seat belts.
Driver Bessy E. Martinez was taken to the hospital, as was Oscar Martinez and a young boy. Two other children, a boy and a girl, were not hurt, said Gabriel and Blanca Castillo's niece, Sandra Torres.
Carilion spokesman Eric Earnhart said this evening that Bessy and Oscar Martinez are in good condition in the hospital.
Gamil Castillo was Gabriel and Blanca's son. Javier was Gamil Castillo's son and Gabriel and Blanca's grandson. Bessy Martinez was Gabriel and Blanca Castillo's daughter, Torres said. Oscar Martinez was Bessy's brother-in-law. The other children involved included Gamil Castillo's son, who was hospitalized, and Gamil Castillo's daughter and Martinez's son.
Torres said the Castillos had recently moved from New Jersey to Dalton. The family was returning from a weekend visit with relatives in New Jersey when the wreck occurred.
There was no indication that drugs or alcohol were involved in the wreck, Smith said.
Sunday's crash in the Chamblissburg section of Bedford County killed one person immediately, and two more died at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital.
That crash occurred about 2:30 p.m. on Nemmo Road about one mile north of its intersection with Virginia 24, state police said. A southbound 1989 Ford Mustang crossed the center line and collided head-on with a 1997 Dodge Dakota pickup.
Brooks, who was riding in the Mustang, died at the scene. Serreno, who was driving the Mustang, and Higgins, who was riding in the pickup, died later.
A 17-year-old girl from Salem who was riding in the Mustang and Calvin Thomason, a 50-year-old Vinton resident who drove the pickup, were hospitalized. Thomason had been released fromt he hospital by this evening, Earnhart said.
Brooks was not wearing a seat belt, Carpentieri said. He did not know about the other people involved in the crash.
On Saturday, Dr. John Bell, a 57-year-old surgeon at Centra Health in Lynchburg, was bicycling in Bedford County when he was hit by a van on U.S. 501 near its intersection with Virginia 846. He died soon after the 1:15 p.m. accident, state police said. He had been wearing a bicycle helmet.
“This is an immeasurable loss for his family, his friends, our community and our Centra family,” said George W. Dawson, Centra Health president and CEO. “Dr. Bell will be deeply missed.”
Bell was one of three cardiothoracic surgeons in Lynchburg, said Susan Brandt of Centra Health. He received his M.D. from the Ohio State University of Medicine and had been a practicing doctor for the past 32 years, according to the health care ratings organization Health Grades. He also did a fellowship, residency and internship at the University of Michigan as well as a fellowship at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, which is part of the National Institutes of Health.
Dreama Sodikoff of Lynchburg drove the 2006 Toyota Sienna that hit Bell.
All three accidents are under investigation.
Staff writer Jessica Marcy contributed to this report.
An early-morning swerve to avoid a deer on Interstate 81 left four family members dead and others injured, state police said today. The one-vehicle crash doubled the death toll of the region's deadliest holiday weekend in years.
Also, police have identified three people who died after a Sunday crash in Bedford County: Justin Brooks, 18, of Salem; his brother Josh Serreno, 24, of Vinton; and Jason Frank Higgins, 68, also of Vinton.
Each day of the Roanoke Valley's Memorial Day weekend has brought a fatal traffic accident.
"The last couple days have been really difficult," Virginia State Police Sgt. Bob Carpentieri said. "... People need to wear seat belts."
A crash at around 2:25 this morning claimed Blanca Castillo, 50, Gabriel Castillo, 51, Gamil Castillo, 31, and Javier Castillo, 10, all of Dalton, Ga. They were among nine people in a 2001 Cheverolet Suburban that swerved and ran off the left side of the southbound interstate near the 137.9 mile marker. The vehicle over-corrected and ran off the right side, then overturned.
The Castillos were flung from the vehicle. The older members of the family died at the scene, and Javier died later at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital.
State police Sgt. Jerry Smith said none of the victims were wearing seat belts.
Driver Bessy E. Martinez was taken to the hospital, as was Oscar Martinez and a young boy. Two other children, a boy and a girl, were not hurt, said Gabriel and Blanca Castillo's niece, Sandra Torres.
Carilion spokesman Eric Earnhart said this evening that Bessy and Oscar Martinez are in good condition in the hospital.
Gamil Castillo was Gabriel and Blanca's son. Javier was Gamil Castillo's son and Gabriel and Blanca's grandson. Bessy Martinez was Gabriel and Blanca Castillo's daughter, Torres said. Oscar Martinez was Bessy's brother-in-law. The other children involved included Gamil Castillo's son, who was hospitalized, and Gamil Castillo's daughter and Martinez's son.
Torres said the Castillos had recently moved from New Jersey to Dalton. The family was returning from a weekend visit with relatives in New Jersey when the wreck occurred.
There was no indication that drugs or alcohol were involved in the wreck, Smith said.
Sunday's crash in the Chamblissburg section of Bedford County killed one person immediately, and two more died at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital.
That crash occurred about 2:30 p.m. on Nemmo Road about one mile north of its intersection with Virginia 24, state police said. A southbound 1989 Ford Mustang crossed the center line and collided head-on with a 1997 Dodge Dakota pickup.
Brooks, who was riding in the Mustang, died at the scene. Serreno, who was driving the Mustang, and Higgins, who was riding in the pickup, died later.
A 17-year-old girl from Salem who was riding in the Mustang and Calvin Thomason, a 50-year-old Vinton resident who drove the pickup, were hospitalized. Thomason had been released fromt he hospital by this evening, Earnhart said.
Brooks was not wearing a seat belt, Carpentieri said. He did not know about the other people involved in the crash.
On Saturday, Dr. John Bell, a 57-year-old surgeon at Centra Health in Lynchburg, was bicycling in Bedford County when he was hit by a van on U.S. 501 near its intersection with Virginia 846. He died soon after the 1:15 p.m. accident, state police said. He had been wearing a bicycle helmet.
“This is an immeasurable loss for his family, his friends, our community and our Centra family,” said George W. Dawson, Centra Health president and CEO. “Dr. Bell will be deeply missed.”
Bell was one of three cardiothoracic surgeons in Lynchburg, said Susan Brandt of Centra Health. He received his M.D. from the Ohio State University of Medicine and had been a practicing doctor for the past 32 years, according to the health care ratings organization Health Grades. He also did a fellowship, residency and internship at the University of Michigan as well as a fellowship at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, which is part of the National Institutes of Health.
Dreama Sodikoff of Lynchburg drove the 2006 Toyota Sienna that hit Bell.
All three accidents are under investigation.
Staff writer Jessica Marcy contributed to this report.
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