| Crash sends three to hospital, shuts down bridge
Three people were airlifted from a crash last night that shut down the Chatham Bridge and caused a massive search along the banks of the Rappahannock River.
The three, two men and a woman, were airlifted to Inova Fairfax Hospital, according to Lt. Kimberly Harper, information officer for Stafford County Fire and Rescue. Their ages were thought to be between 19 and 36, but their identities were not immediately available, she said.
The crash occurred about 9 p.m. when a black Honda SUV traveling from State Route 3 in Stafford to Fredericksburg sideswiped the guardrail leading to the bridge. The vehicle hit the pier at the end of the bridge, and the driver was ejected onto the pavement as the SUV flipped over and slid down a steep bank on the Stafford side of the river, authorities said.
The other two occupants were entrapped and had to be cut out of the car, Harper said.
The passenger in the front seat was the only one wearing a seat belt. He was dazed, and at first told authorities there were seven people in the car. This set off a massive search using a grid system and thermal imaging, Harper said.
Volunteer rescue personnel and firefighters from Stafford, Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County were at the scene within minutes, making the bridge a flashing display of blue and red lights.
The crash was reported shortly after 9 p.m., and the bridge remained closed for two hours as rescue work continued at the scene.
Article Published in The Free Lance Star, 2/22/07
BY Cathy Jett And Dick Hammerstrom
(all material credited to FLS-text and photo) |
