WAYNE COUNTY, OHIO, Ohio — A severe two-car crash at an intersection in Wayne County left one driver dead and another with minor injuries Friday morning. It marked the tenth fatal crash in the county this year, the Ohio State Highway Patrol announced.
Brunswick resident Tracey D. Votchko, 49, was killed at the wheel of her 2019 Volkswagen Tiguan SUV when she “failed to yield from a stop sign” and was struck by a 2008 Ford F-250 Super Duty pickup truck in the driver’s side door. The incident happened at approximately 11:45 a.m.
The OSHP said Votchko was heading north on Friendsville Road (County Road 6) and was attempting to turn left onto Easton Road (State Route 604) in Canaan Township when she was hit by the pickup and “rotated off the northeast corner of the intersection and struck the ditch.”
The driver of the pickup truck, 23-year-old Smithville resident Darin L. Steiner, sustained minor injuries and was treated at the scene of the crash.
According to the OSHP, Votchko is the 11th person to be killed in ten fatal crashes this year to date in Wayne County. The OSHP said road closures have led to more drivers self-detouring and causing an increase in traffic on some routes adjacent to State Route 83.
“Area motorists and people traveling through the area are reminded to exercise additional care at all intersections surrounding area detours as other motorists may be unfamiliar with roads and intersections in the affected areas,” said the OSHP in a statement.
OSHP officials said that both drivers in the fatal crash were driving without passengers, and both were wearing seat belts. Alcohol or drugs are not considered to be a factor.
OSHP officers were assisted by the Wayne County Sheriff, Canaan Township Fire and EMS, the Ohio Department of Transportation and Bear’s Towing.