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Family and friends of the victims of a fatal car accident in Oswego - and the community as a whole - spent Sunday trying to come to grips with the alcohol-related crash that killed four teens and seriously injured five other people.
Matthew Frank, 17; Katherine Merkel, 14; Jessica Nutoni, 15; and Tiffany Urso, 16; all of Oswego, were pronounced dead at the scene of the accident at 4:15 a.m. Sunday, said Kendall County Deputy Coroner Jacquie Marcellis.
The driver of the car, Sandra Vasquez, 23, of Montgomery, was charged Sunday afternoon with driving under the influence.
Nine people were riding in a 2001 Infiniti four-door sedan when the car struck a utility pole about 2:20 a.m. Sunday near Route 31 and River Run Boulevard, Oswego police Det. Rob Sherwood said.
Sherwood said Vasquez, currently in critical condition at Rush-Copley Medical Center in Aurora, hadn't been taken into custody as of Sunday evening.
"She's obviously going to have some major consequences because of this," Sherwood said.
The other passengers, all of Oswego, are Robert Larson, 15, who is in critical condition at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove; Arielle Rexford, 16, who is in fair condition at Rush-Copley Medical Center in Aurora; James McGee, 14; and Joshua Dillon, 16. Conditions for McGee and Dillon were unavailable Sunday.
John Merkel said his family is devastated by the tragedy.
He was at work about 7:30 a.m. when he got a phone call about what happened early Sunday morning.
"She's never gonna call me 'Daddy' again," he said in tears.
Merkel said supportive community and family members called and stopped by throughout the day.
News of the crash spread Sunday through the town and via the Internet. Mourners stopped at a roadside memorial where four white crosses stood - one for each of the teens killed.
"It's just bad all the way around," Sherwood said. "There's nine people affected, nine families, nine (groups of) friends ... and it's just going to hit the community pretty hard. It already has."
He declined to say why a 23-year-old was driving eight teens. Sherwood said Vasquez is not related to any of the victims, and officials aren't sure of the relationships between the eight teens, either.
The students were at a nearby social gathering before the accident occurred, Sherwood said.
"We still have investigators out there that are talking to people that they were with," he said.
The Kendall County Major Crimes Task Force is assisting in the investigation, and an accident reconstruction is being completed by police. Route 31 between Route 34 and Mill Road remained closed Sunday as police investigated.
Oswego police also are working in conjunction with Oswego School District 308 on crisis intervention.
The eight teens are Oswego High School students.
"Our hearts and our prayers are with the families of those who were tragically lost, and with those who are hospitalized," said Oswego School District 308 Superintendent David Behlow.
Behlow said school will be in session today, with counselors, social workers and school psychologists available to both students and staff. Help will be at the school through the week and as long as necessary, Behlow said.
Behlow encourages parents to send their children to school, where people are on hand to deal with not only the loss and the mourning, but also other issues that could be connected.
"Unfortunately, we experience losses on almost a yearly basis, but never of this magnitude," he said. "But we take every loss very, very personally and mourn each one."
Gary Adams, village administrator, said the crash will have a tremendous impact on the community.
"This is just a terrible tragedy," Adams said. "Our hearts and prayers go out to the families and friends, especially the young people who are impacted. I'm sure there will be an outpouring of support in the community to help the people involved."
source- http://dailyherald.com/story.asp?id=280199
i live in oswego and live about 1/4 mile from where the crash occured. our power went out and i was like wtf then i heard a bunch of helicopters that were airlifting the kids. my bro and sis were friends with some of the kids.
RIP to them.
Matthew Frank, 17; Katherine Merkel, 14; Jessica Nutoni, 15; and Tiffany Urso, 16; all of Oswego, were pronounced dead at the scene of the accident at 4:15 a.m. Sunday, said Kendall County Deputy Coroner Jacquie Marcellis.
The driver of the car, Sandra Vasquez, 23, of Montgomery, was charged Sunday afternoon with driving under the influence.
Nine people were riding in a 2001 Infiniti four-door sedan when the car struck a utility pole about 2:20 a.m. Sunday near Route 31 and River Run Boulevard, Oswego police Det. Rob Sherwood said.
Sherwood said Vasquez, currently in critical condition at Rush-Copley Medical Center in Aurora, hadn't been taken into custody as of Sunday evening.
"She's obviously going to have some major consequences because of this," Sherwood said.
The other passengers, all of Oswego, are Robert Larson, 15, who is in critical condition at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove; Arielle Rexford, 16, who is in fair condition at Rush-Copley Medical Center in Aurora; James McGee, 14; and Joshua Dillon, 16. Conditions for McGee and Dillon were unavailable Sunday.
John Merkel said his family is devastated by the tragedy.
He was at work about 7:30 a.m. when he got a phone call about what happened early Sunday morning.
"She's never gonna call me 'Daddy' again," he said in tears.
Merkel said supportive community and family members called and stopped by throughout the day.
News of the crash spread Sunday through the town and via the Internet. Mourners stopped at a roadside memorial where four white crosses stood - one for each of the teens killed.
"It's just bad all the way around," Sherwood said. "There's nine people affected, nine families, nine (groups of) friends ... and it's just going to hit the community pretty hard. It already has."
He declined to say why a 23-year-old was driving eight teens. Sherwood said Vasquez is not related to any of the victims, and officials aren't sure of the relationships between the eight teens, either.
The students were at a nearby social gathering before the accident occurred, Sherwood said.
"We still have investigators out there that are talking to people that they were with," he said.
The Kendall County Major Crimes Task Force is assisting in the investigation, and an accident reconstruction is being completed by police. Route 31 between Route 34 and Mill Road remained closed Sunday as police investigated.
Oswego police also are working in conjunction with Oswego School District 308 on crisis intervention.
The eight teens are Oswego High School students.
"Our hearts and our prayers are with the families of those who were tragically lost, and with those who are hospitalized," said Oswego School District 308 Superintendent David Behlow.
Behlow said school will be in session today, with counselors, social workers and school psychologists available to both students and staff. Help will be at the school through the week and as long as necessary, Behlow said.
Behlow encourages parents to send their children to school, where people are on hand to deal with not only the loss and the mourning, but also other issues that could be connected.
"Unfortunately, we experience losses on almost a yearly basis, but never of this magnitude," he said. "But we take every loss very, very personally and mourn each one."
Gary Adams, village administrator, said the crash will have a tremendous impact on the community.
"This is just a terrible tragedy," Adams said. "Our hearts and prayers go out to the families and friends, especially the young people who are impacted. I'm sure there will be an outpouring of support in the community to help the people involved."
source- http://dailyherald.com/story.asp?id=280199
i live in oswego and live about 1/4 mile from where the crash occured. our power went out and i was like wtf then i heard a bunch of helicopters that were airlifting the kids. my bro and sis were friends with some of the kids.
RIP to them.
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