At approximately 8 a.m. Wednesday, officers from the Indiana State Police and the Miami County Sheriff’s Department responded to a two vehicle crash on U.S. 31, at Miami County Road 800 South, in which three people were injured.
The preliminary crash investigation by Indiana State Police Trooper Adam Moor revealed that Zachary Straub, 17, Peru, was driving a 2003 Buick Regal southbound on U.S. 31, near Miami County Road 800 South. Straub turned eastbound, attempting to cross the northbound lanes of U.S. 31, onto County Road 800 South. For an undetermined reason, Straub pulled into the path of a northbound 2001 Chevrolet Malibu, driven by Jeffrey Crockett, 39, Indianapolis. The Buick was struck in the passenger side by the Chevrolet. Both vehicles rolled onto their roofs and came to rest in a ditch on the northeast corner of the intersection.
Crockett and Straub were both transported to Dukes Memorial Hospital, in Peru, with non-life threatening injuries. Austin Straub, 14, Peru, a passenger in the Buick, had to be extricated from the vehicle by firefighters from the Grissom and Pipe Creek Fire Departments. He was flown from the crash, by Lutheran Medical Helicopter, to Lutheran Hospital in Ft. Wayne. At last check, he was listed in critical condition.
All participants in the crash were wearing a seat belt which Trooper Moor believes helped reduce the severity of injuries suffered in this crash.
This is an ongoing investigation.