SCOTT COUNTY, Ind. — Five people were killed and two were seriously injured in a single-vehicle crash overnight in Indiana.
According to Sgt. Carey Huls with Indiana State Police, officers received the call of a crash on North Main Street in Scottsburg around 2 a.m. on Friday. When crews arrived on the scene, they found a black 2002 Ford explorer that had extensive damage in a field on the side of the road. It appears that the explorer was traveling south when it went off of the roadway, rolling multiple times before coming to rest in the field.
Sgt. Huls said two of the seven occupants were trapped inside the vehicle requiring extrication before being rushed to Scott County Memorial Hospital. Both were later flown to UofL Hospital and are in stable condition. Five people were killed in the crash. He believes that the victims were a group of friends or acquaintances.
The four deceased adult victims have been identified as Jeremiah James Akers, 18, Deputy, Indiana; Christopher Paul Dry, 18, Indianapolis, Indiana; Wandella Marie Brown, 22, Austin, Indiana; and Elizabeth Michelle Wagner, 20, Lexington, Indiana. It is believed Wandella Brown was the driver at the time of the crash.
Adam Wayne Parker, 20, of Austin Indiana was flown to UofL Hospital in Stable condition and is the owner of the vehicle. Shelby Lynn Griffin, 21, of Texas was also flown to UofL Hospital in stable condition.
None of the seven passengers in the SUV were wearing their seatbelts. The five people that were killed were ejected from the car including 16-year-old Sarah Starling of New Albany, Indiana.
It is unclear what caused the crash, but police say believe that an excessive rate of speed was a large factor. This crash is still under investigation. Family members of the deceased have been notified.
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