Pedestrian – Vehicle accident near Cedar Crest Elementary

According to initial reports; the DC Sheriff’s Department responded to a pedestrian accident near Cedar Crest Elementary. It was reported the driver had left the scene but the Sheriff’s Department may have found the individual./p

Update 8:00 a.m. – Driver was elderly female and hit a child; vehicle sustained damage to the passenger side front corner of the van. No identities released yet and condition of the victim unknown at this time.

Update 8:45 a.m. – According to Jeff Fleck, a bus driver for Southeast Dubois County School Corporation, the accident occurred when he stopped to pick up a teenager on Highway 162 and the suspect vehicle ran the bus stop signal and struck the teenager who was standing on the shoulder of the road near a drive way approximately one half mile north of Cedar Crest School. EMS transported teenager to Memorial Hospital. The teenager’s condition is unknown at this time. The suspect vehicle that initially left the scene of the accident has subsequently been found by the DC Sheriff’s Department.

Update 9:50 a.m. – The teenager has been identified as Jason Burroughs, an eighteen-year-old senior at Forest Park High School. Burroughs is in stable condition and has been transported from Memorial Hospital by EMS to St. Mary’s Medical Center in Evansville for further medical evaluation and treatment. His injuries at this time include, multiple abrasions, a fractured femur and possible fracture of the hip.

The elderly lady driving the van that struck Burroughs, proceeded a short distance down the highway from the accident, just out of view of the bus driver, to the entrance of the 4-H fair grounds where she pulled over to wait for authorities. The DC Sheriff’s Department and Indiana State Police have completed their investigation and the highway is now open to traffic.

Update 11:49 a.m. – Mary A. Seitz, 74, of Branchville, was identified as the driver that struck Burroughs with her 2003 Chevy Venture. We will continue to update on Burroughs condition as we learn more.

Update 11:30 p.m. – According to Tina Hostetler, Jason’s foster mom, witnesses stated Jason pushed another child at the bus stop out of the path of the vehicle before being struck.

The extent of his injuries are as follows: fractured foot, pelvis, and clavicle, broken ribs and a punctured lung. He has been moved to the pediatric care unit and is sore but stable.