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Ejected passenger sustains minor injuries
McCOOK, Neb. -- A rollover accident at the intersection of West Fifth Street and J Street last Friday, which resulted in a local teen being ejected from one of the vehicles, has the McCook Police Department pleading with area residents to buckle up.
Senior Sgt. Kevin Darling said 15-year-old Nathan Guess of Cambridge, Nebraska, was lucky to have sustained only minor injuries and hoped others did not take the accident for granted.
Sgt. Darling has been working local schools, polling drivers and generally spreading friendly reminders to buckle up in recent months, yet Friday's near miss served as a scary reminder of just how important seat belts are.
"Sometimes it doesn't sink in until there's a tragedy. Just because this 15-year-old was lucky don't take it for granted. We hear it all the time, 'I always wear my seat belt when we go out of town,' sometimes running errands around town people forget," said Darling, adding it was a casual approach that could be the difference between a scary collision and a deadly one.
Guess was a full ejection from the middle seat of a van driven by 52-year-old Karen Riemann of W. Second Street, likely at the time of impact, according to investigators. Riemann's van was traveling east on West J Street and passing through the intersection at West Fifth Street when a vehicle driven by 63-year-old Marla J. Bowlin of Culbertson, Nebraska, ran a stop sign and slammed into the side of her van.
Bowlin reported her brakes failed as she approached the intersection and Riemann swerved to avoid the collision but was ultimately unable to. Bowlin's vehicle struck the passenger side rear wheel and quarter panel of the van, sending it into a 180 degree spin, which ejected Guess through the passenger side window and sent him landing in the street.
The van continued its arced slide until the driver's side wheels struck the south curb of West J Street and launched the vehicle into the air, until the roof slammed into a nearby tree and it came to rest on the driver's side of the vehicle.
Both drivers, Guess and 14-year-old Brittany Riemann were transported to Community Hospital for treatment of either visible or possible injuries, according to the accident report.
Chief of Police Isaac Brown heard the collision from a nearby yard and reported seeing Guess come down in the middle of the street, as the van flipped laterally and slammed up against the tree. Brown said when Guess hit the ground he tucked and rolled, before attempting to back out of the way of the van as it initially appeared it was going to fall back onto its wheels.
Chief Brown said he was worried at the time the ejected passenger was going to get hung up and thrown under the van before it went airborne.
Sgt. Darling reiterated Guess was lucky his injuries weren't more serious and asked drivers to please buckle up and ensure all passengers are buckled up as well, adding "you can't depend on luck."