DRIVER FAILED TO
YIELD AND IS KILLED IN A FATAL ACCIDENT ON CHURCHVILLE AVENUE IN STAUNTON,
VIRGINIA
January 25, 2015
STAUNTON, VIRGINIA - Police said the driver of a small
Toyota was killed when pulling onto Churchville Avenue from Englewood Drive on
the city's west end Saturday morning. The car ended up near Bellcreek Drive.
Sgt. R.W. Burke, of the Staunton Police identified the
driver as 52-year-old Susan Arehart of Staunton. Arehart and a fellow passenger were trapped in
the car when Staunton Fire and Rescue arrived and extricated them minutes later
using the jaws of life. The passenger was transported to Augusta Health.
Arehart's car entered traffic from the side street when
it was struck by an older-model jeep traveling west on Churchville Ave.
"The only thing we can determine conclusively is
that the Toyota should have yielded to the jeep," Burke said. The
morning's wet road conditions did not appear to be a factor in the accident.
The jeep, driven by Joe Hagood of Richmond, sustained
surprisingly little damage from the collision. Hagood and his fellow passenger
declined medical treatment at the scene and appeared unharmed.
The Augusta County region saw 13 traffic fatalities in
2014, which was down from previous years.