2 killed, two injured in Defiance County crash

12/28/2006

DEFIANCE Two 19-year-old men were killed and two passengers were injured early today when their pickup truck went off the road in Defiance County and struck a tree, the Ohio Highway Patrol said.

The driver, Bruce E. Hearne of Ney, Ohio, and a front-seat passenger, Tyler L. Lewis of Alvordton, Ohio, both 19, were pronounced dead at the scene, troopers with the Defiance post said.

Passengers Brittany Vogelsong, 16, of Sherwood, Ohio, and Brittany Poth, 17, of Hicksville, Ohio, were flown to Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne, where they were in serious condition, troopers said.

Investigators said Mr. Hearne was driving on Behnfeldt Road south of Baker Road in Mark Township when his 1996 Dodge Ram went off the road, struck a mail box, and then struck a tree. The accident was reported at 1:06 a.m.

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