MOOREFIELD TWP., Clark County — UPDATE @ 12:20 p.m. (July 8):
An Urbana husband and wife were killed Thursday afternoon in a two-car crash that sent all five passengers -- three of whom were young children -- from the other vehicle to area hospitals, the Ohio State Highway Patrol said.
Robert Ennis, 75, and Janet Ennis, 72, were killed, said Sgt. James Bryner, Springfield Patrol Post. They died at the scene, the intersection of East County Line and Middle Urbana roads in Moorefield Twp., northern Clark County.
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According to the preliminary results of the continuing investigation, a Honda Accord headed east on East County Line Road failed to yield and struck a Ford Fusion headed south on Middle Urbana Road, the sergeant said. The Honda T-boned the other car and ended up smashed against a telephone pole in the accident reported about 3:40 p.m. The Ford came to rest against a tree.
Whether the driver of the Honda, identified as Steven Hughes, 31, of Quincy will be cited or charged depends on the investigation, Sgt. Bryner said. The children in the Honda are believed to be Hughes’ children, but the patrol is working to confirm that.
The passenger in the Honda has been identified as Randy Thompson Burdiss, 28, of Columbus, according to corrected information in a media release.
All five suffered serious injuries. Burdiss was taken to Urbana Mercy, but was later transported to Miami Valley Hospital. As of Friday morning, Burdiss was in stable condition, according a spokesperson for Miami Valley Hospital.
Steven Hughes was taken to Springfield Regional Medical Center where he was later discharged.
Clover Hughes, 6, was taken by CareFlight to Dayton Children’s Hospital and she remains in the hospital, in stable condition. Bexley Hughes, 8, and Nova Hughes, 5, were taken to Springfield Regional. Both were later discharged from the hospital, according to Springfield Regional Medical Center.
All of the children are of North Lewisburg, according to the patrol.
The speed limit on both roads is 55 mph, but the investigation continues to determine whether speed or some other factor contributed to the accident, Sgt. Bryner said. No charges had been filed as of Thursday night.
This is a developing story and we will update it as more information is released.