A 17-year-old Lorain County girl is dead following a single-car crash in Grafton Twp. Wednesday night.
According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Danielle Eckert of Columbia Station was driving her Ford Explorer eastbound on Capel Road when she went off the left side of the roadway and struck a tree near State Route 83. The crash occurred around 9:13 p.m.
Eckert, who was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the accident, was taken to UH Elyria Medical Center, where she later died.
Eckert had been a member of Columbia Local Schools before recently joining the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow (ECOT). Superintendent Graig Bansek released this statement after her passing:
Columbia Local Schools is mourning the death of one of our own, Danielle Eckert. Danielle attended Columbia since kindergarten and recently withdrew to E.C.O.T. We send our thoughts and condolences to her family and friends.Danielle was a friend to so many at CHS and in our community and was loved by all. We will miss her smile and friendship. The Lorain County Schools Crisis Counseling Team, school counselors and administrators as well as local clergy were on hand at Columbia High School today to talk to our students.
Our school family is still in shock and saddened by this tragic accident. Once a Raider…Always a Raider!!!!!
The crash remains under investigation. Authorities believe alcohol was a factor.
