Two Children Killed in Fatal Car Accident on Pennsylvania Highway
A scary car accident on a highway in Lower Saucon Township, PA resulted in two people dying.
The car crash occurred during the early morning hours, around 1:00 a.m., on Interstate-78 in Lower Saucon, Pennsylvania. Lower Saucon Township is located in Northampton County, which is situated just north of Bucks County.
According to authorities, the driver of a 2011 Nissan Versa may have been intoxicated as she headed east on I-78. As the vehicle approached the Hellertown interchange on the highway, the driver reportedly swerved across the lanes and began traveling on the narrow left shoulder. The driver of the Nissan then allegedly over-corrected the vehicle and swerved in the opposite direction across multiple lanes before slamming into the guardrail on the right side of the highway. The force of the collision with the guardrail caused the vehicle to move back to the extreme left side of I-78 once again. At that point, the Nissan collided with two cars traveling in the same direction on the road: a Kia Forte and a Dodge Caravan.
There were four people in the Nissan: the driver, a 31-year-old passenger, and two young kids. The collision with the other vehicles caused all four occupants to be thrown from the car and onto the roadway.
One of the young children in the Nissan was a five-year-old girl. She sustained catastrophic injuries in the auto accident and was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash. The other accident injury victims were taken to Lehigh Valley Cedar Crest Hospital in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where they received urgent medical treatment for their injuries.
Both adults managed to survive the accident. Tragically, the second young child in the car at the time of the collision, a two-year-old girl, died two days later.
Meanwhile, the occupants of the other cars involved in the fatal auto accident sustained only minor injuries and did not require hospitalization.
The driver of the Nissan was reportedly a 54-year-old woman from Newark, New Jersey. It is unclear at this time why she was on a highway in Pennsylvania with her two young children at such a late hour.
While investigating the accident, police officers allegedly discovered open containers of alcohol inside the Nissan.
After the accident, Pennsylvania State Police troopers conducted an exhaustive investigation as they attempted to figure out exactly what might have caused the driver of the Nissan to lose control of the car in the moments immediately preceding the crash. While conducting the investigation and clearing the road of debris, police had to shut down the highway for almost 11 hours.
While the investigation continues, the driver of the Nissan has not yet been charged with any criminal offenses or cited for any moving violations. It remains possible that she could be criminally charged with vehicular manslaughter at some point.
Additionally, the driver could potentially be subject to personal injury lawsuits from the other injured motorists. Although the other motorists reportedly suffered minor injuries, the driver of the Nissan could still be on the hook for the costs of their medical treatment, as well as the property damage to their vehicles.
To learn more, read the following article: 2nd Young Child Dies after Crash on Interstate 78