Saturday, January 17, 2015

3 DIE ON WESTBOUND INTERSTATE 70 IN FALLOWFIELD, PENNSYLVANIA WHEN THEIR CHRYSLER TOWN & COUNTRY SLAMMED INTO THE BACK OF A TRACTOR-TRAILER, THEN HIT THE MEDIAN AND CAUGHT FIRE.



3 DIE ON WESTBOUND INTERSTATE 70 IN FALLOWFIELD, PENNSYLVANIA WHEN THEIR CHRYSLER TOWN & COUNTRY SLAMMED INTO THE BACK OF A TRACTOR-TRAILER, THEN HIT THE MEDIAN AND CAUGHT FIRE. 





January 16, 2015

Frank Kramer, his wife and daughter were on their way in their minivan to visit family in Washington County for the weekend to celebrate a late Christmas. 

When they didn't show up on time Friday night en route from their home in Middletown, Dauphin County, family members knew something was wrong. 

State police and the county coroner said Kramer, 57, his wife, Kristy, 52, and daughter, Taylor, 22, died in a fiery crash just after 9:30 p.m. on westbound Interstate 70 in Fallowfield when their Chrysler Town & Country slammed into the back of a tractor-trailer. 

“I called them both, and no one answered, so I called the state police,” said Donna Kramer, 79, of North Strabane, Frank Kramer's mother. “The officer asked me if someone in the car used a wheelchair, and I said, ‘Yes, my granddaughter.' Then the state police and coroner came to the house about 2 a.m. It's like a nightmare.” 

The minivan hit the back of a tractor-trailer driven by Yaw K. Oppong, 43, of Denver. The van then hit a median and caught fire, according to the Washington County Coroner Tim Warco. The impact pushed the tractor-trailer into another vehicle driven by Thomas E. Evans, 60, of Luzerne, Fayette County, according to state police. 

Police did not report other injuries. All three members of the Kramer family died at the scene. 

Trooper Kevin Gabrovsek said the crash is under investigation to determine what caused the vehicle to run into the back of the tractor-trailer. He said there were no skid marks that were made before the collision. 

“There didn't appear to be any evasive action,” Gabrovsek said.
Frank Kramer was a former newspaper pressman who retired for health problems, including bouts with lung cancer and kidney dialysis, his mother said. He graduated from Canon-McMillan High School before working for several newspapers in the area. 

Kristy Murdock Kramer graduated from Waynesburg High School and later Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a degree in journalism. She was working as a reporter at the former Democrat-Messenger of Waynesburg when she met her husband, who was working in the pressroom at the time. 

They later moved to Middletown and worked at a newspaper there, family said, before Kristy quit to take care of their daughter, who had disabilities from Rett syndrome and required around-the-clock care. 

“My sister was a big advocate for the Rett Syndrome Foundation and was always doing fundraisers,” said her brother, Steven “Kelly” Murdock, 54, of Waynesburg. “She really took care of my niece. My niece was really into Sidney Crosby and the Penguins. They never missed a game. 

“We had postponed Christmas from the regular time because Frank was having some health problems, so this was going to be our Christmas weekend.”
Donna Kramer said she worried that her son's recent dialysis would have made him too tired to drive. 

“I talked to him just before he left. I told him to be real careful,” Donna Kramer said. “He said he would, and then I said, ‘I love you.' He said, ‘I love you too,' and that's the last time I talked to him.”
Behm Funeral Home in Waynesburg is handling the arrangements, family members said.