5 VIRGINIA
RESIDENTS RIDING A CAR KILLED IN MD. CRASH INVOLVING WILMINGTON TRUCK
DRIVER. THE CAR AND TRUCK CRASHED AT AN
INTERSECTION NEAR CHESAPEAKE COLLEGE, IN QUEENSTOWN, MD
WYE MILLS, Md. -- Maryland State Police say five people
are dead after a Virginia family's car collided with a tractor-trailer driven
by a Wilmington man in Queen Anne's County.
The truck driver, Yvenet Mayette, 28, was also injured
in the crash.
He was flown by Maryland State Police helicopter to the
University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center. Details on his injuries were not
immediately available.
Police say three adults, one of whom was pregnant, and
two children were killed in the crash about 1:15 a.m. Saturday on Route 50 in
Wye Mills. The car and truck crashed at an intersection near Chesapeake
College.
The victims are identified as 24-year-old Regina Ayres
of Greenbush, Virginia; her 7-year-old daughter Jordan Ayres; her 2-month-old
son Jonathan Ayres; her 25-year-old boyfriend Travis Straton of Onancock,
Virginia; and Regina Ayers' 30-year-old sister Zerissa Ayers, who was pregnant.
The family was driving in a 2006 Suzuki Forenza
westbound on Rt. 50 approaching the intersection with Rt. 213 at the time of
the accident. The tractor trailer was southbound on Rt. 213 at Rt. 50
The truck collided with car's passenger side, police
said. Both vehicles traveled across the intersection and the tractor trailer
rolled over the car before coming to rest, investigators reported.
Four of the five victims were pronounced dead at the
scene. Zerissa Ayres, who was pregnant, was transported by ambulance to Easton
Memorial Hospital, where both she was pronounced dead. Her unborn child did not
survive. Police said investigators have been unable to determine who was
driving the car the family was traveling in.
The Maryland State Police Crash Team and Maryland State
Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division are investigating.
Troopers said the Ayres family left Greenbush, Va.,
Friday night on a trip to Baltimore, Md. to visit family. The tractor trailer
driver was reportedly been headed home to Wilmington, according to police.
The trailer was loaded with 44,000 pounds of polyfiber
that the Mayette picked up Friday in Charlotte, N.C., police said. The tractor
trailer is owned by Nationwide Solutions, LLC, of St. John, Indiana.
Fire and EMS crews from Queen Anne's County,
Centreville, Queenstown, Grasonville, Hillsboro, and Talbot County responded to
the scene of the accident. State Highway Administration members and deputies
from the Queen Anne's County Sheriff's Office also helped with the accident.
Authorities are still investigating the cause of the
crash. At this time, alcohol does not appear to be a factor in the accident.
The intersection where the crash happened is controlled by a traffic signal,
according to authorities.
The crash required the closure of both east and
westbound Rt. 50, which re-opened in both directions at 9:30 a.m. Saturday.
No charges have been filed at this time. It appears that either the driver or the car
run a red light.
Anyone who may have witnessed the crash is asked to
contact Maryland State Police at (410) 758-1101, ext. 7.
