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Toni Moenter rests at her home after the crash. She south treatment for neck and knee injuries.
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6 from Michigan killed in crash on State Rt. 2 as return from Cedar Point ends in tragedy

Wadsworth / Blade

6 from Michigan killed in crash on State Rt. 2 as return from Cedar Point ends in tragedy

OAK HARBOR, Ohio - Driving back to Toledo after a day of fun at Cedar Point, Toni Moenter was worried about the Chevy Blazer weaving back and forth on the road ahead of her.

She and a friend, Amanda Steedman, tried frantically to reach 911 on their cell phones.

"He was swerving from lane to lane," Ms. Moenter said last night. "I wanted to get a cop to get out here."

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Unable to find a signal with their phones, they watched helplessly as the Blazer crossed the centerline into the path of an eastbound tractor-trailer on the Turtle Creek bridge just west of the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station.

The crash started a chain-reaction collision late Monday on State Rt. 2 that killed two adults and four children on their way back to Detroit from the Sandusky amusement park. A fifth child was critically injured.

"I've been crying since it happened," Miss Steedman, 16, said yesterday. "It's awful."

All of the victims were riding in a Cadillac Escalade sport utility vehicle that was behind Ms. Moenter's Toyota Corolla. After colliding with the Blazer's left front corner, the semi hit the rear left quarter-panel of Ms. Moenter's car, and then rammed head-on into the Escalade, said Sgt. Tony Myers of the Ohio Highway Patrol's Sandusky post.

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The impact of the collision pushed the Cadillac through a guardrail on the north side of the bridge and into the creek, where it landed upside down in four to five feet of water. The semi plunged into the creek next to the Escalade but stayed upright, while the Blazer went off the south side of the road and came to rest in a stream, the highway patrol said.

Emergency crews rescued one of the Escalade's occupants, Brandi Scott, 13, of Sterling Heights, Mich. She was taken by helicopter to St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center, where she was in critical condition yesterday with spinal cord injuries.

Killed were Brandi's father Darryl K. Scott, 44, of Detroit, the driver of the Escalade; his girlfriend Shannon Scott, 24, of Romulus, Mich., and his niece, Ariel Scott, 12, of Detroit.

Also killed were sisters Alexis Howard, 9, and Alecia Howard, 7, of East Point, Mich., both daughters of Mr. Scott; and a family friend, Amber Channey, 6, of Ypsilanti, Mich.

Ottawa County Coroner Gilbert Bucholz said autopsies showed that Shannon Scott and Alexis Howard drowned, Mr. Scott died of multiple blunt force trauma, and Alecia Howard and Ariel Scott died of head injuries. Amber Channey's death was caused by drowning and head injuries, the coroner said.

The driver of the Blazer, Brian J. Woody, 28, of Toledo, and a passenger, Andrea L. Bain, 21, were treated at St. Charles Mercy Hospital, as was the driver of the semi, Shawn C. Tuffelmire, 31, of Hastings, Mich. Ms. Moenter sought treatment after the accident for injuries to her neck and right knee.

Ms. Bain was involved in an incident last night (Toledo shootings) as a man identified by police as a former boyfriend forced his way into her parents' Old Orchard home, where she was staying. Both of the men were shot, police reported.

Brandi's stepfather, Joseph Parker of Sterling Heights, said Brandi was sleeping in the Escalade when the crash occurred. Mr. Parker, who is married to Brandi's mother, Michelle, said he was "devastated" by the crash but grateful for her survival. As of yesterday afternoon, the girl had not been told about the deaths of her family members.

"The only thing Brandi's saying right now is where is her dad," he said. "Brandi is a bright young woman. I thank God and I thank whoever saved her."

Mr. Parker said he and his wife would raise Brandi along with her 5-year-old half-sister, Diamond, who did not go on the ill-fated trip to Cedar Point.

"This is my job now," he said. "It was my job when I married Michelle; so she'll still have a dad."

Monique McCullough of Detroit, Brandi's aunt, called her survival "a miracle."

"The Lord was with Brandi," Ms. McCullough said. "I'm just real sad for everybody else."

Rescuers responding to the site of the crash, which occurred at 11:46 p.m. Monday, found a scene of horrifying devastation.

Miss Steedman said the Escalade, which was halfway submerged in the creek, "just looked like a ball of metal when they pulled it out, full of seaweed and stuff."

Floating next to the upside-down vehicle were two large SpongeBob SquarePants dolls, probably prizes won in carnival games at the amusement park, Sergeant Myers said.

The highway patrol had not determined a cause of the accident yesterday. Sergeant Myers, who was preparing a reconstruction of the crash scene, said, "At this point in time, there's no indication that the semi ever crossed the center line" before the crash.

A set of skid marks that Sergeant Myers said were left by the tractor-trailer could be followed diagonally across the road, ending at the north side of the bridge where the semi and the Escalade broke through the guardrail.

The driver of the semi, Mr. Tuffelmire, could not be reached for comment last night.

A woman answering the door yesterday afternoon at Mr. Woody's home on Camden Street in East Toledo said he was asleep and would not speak with a reporter.

A highway patrol dispatcher said all of the drivers involved in the crash had been tested for alcohol consumption. No results were available and no charges had been filed last night.

Ms. Moenter, 19, said the crash happened so quickly she did not have time to react. "All of a sudden we got around Davis-Besse and he swerved and looked to me like he went head-on into the semi-truck," she said. "The semi-truck swerved over into our lane after the Blazer hit him."

The road was closed between Benton-Carroll Road and State Rt. 19 until 6:30 p.m. yesterday to allow for rescue and cleanup efforts.

Lt. Herb Oertli, chief of port operations for the U.S. Coast Guard's Toledo marine safety office, said 100 gallons of diesel fuel and five gallons each of motor oil and anti-freeze spilled into the creek.

With help from Carroll Township firefighters, ERS of Ohio, Inc., of Weston set up booms to contain the spill and vacuumed the pollutants out of the creek.

Contact Steve Murphy at:

smurphy@theblade.com

or 419-724-6078.

First Published June 23, 2004, 1:04 p.m.

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Toni Moenter rests at her home after the crash. She south treatment for neck and knee injuries.  (Wadsworth / Blade)
This sport-utility vehicle came to rest on its top in a creek.
Brandi Scott
Debris lies at the roadside as an environmental cleanup crew removes diesel fuel that was spilled during the crash.  (DANIEL MILLER / AP)
Wadsworth / Blade
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