Four killed when SUV careens over I-79 median in Greene County

Oct. 04--Three local teenagers and a Canadian motorcyclist died Wednesday when a sport utility vehicle careened over a median and collided with a camper and a motorcycle on Interstate 79.

Teary-eyed family members gathered at the Waynesburg state police barracks learned Wednesday night that 18-year-olds Cullin Frazer, of Waynesburg, Benjamin Hardy, of Waynesburg, and Bryon Kerr, of Carmichaels, and 47-year-old Michael Cohen of Oshawa, Canada, all died at the scene of the collision in the southbound lanes of Interstate 79 just south of Marianna. Four others were seriously injured.

"Speaking to the families after this happens -- that is easily the hardest thing I do," Trooper Barton Lemansky said.

The cause of the crash remained a mystery late Wednesday night, when troopers continued to divert traffic off the area's main roadway so they could continue to collect evidence.

Witnesses, however, had already helped police piece together a general idea of how the crash played out.

PG graphic: Four dead in I-79 crash

(Click image for larger version)

Shortly after 4:30 p.m., a 2003 Mitsubishi Outlander carrying six teenagers in the northbound lanes "abruptly and for undetermined reasons" drove up a hilly median dividing the highway, Trooper Lemansky said. The car briefly went airborne before it landed in the southbound lanes, where it "just barely kissed" a truck pulling a camper and then collided with the motorcycle, Trooper Lemansky said.

The Honda Goldwing motorcycle took "the brunt" of the impact, he said. The driver, Mr. Cohen, died at the scene and his passenger, Sandra Cohen, 48, also of Oshawa, Canada, was flown to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown.

The SUV driver, Mr. Frazer, died at the scene as did two of his passengers -- Mr. Hardy and Mr. Kerr. The three remaining SUV passengers -- Justin Gillogly, 16, Thomas Miller, 16, and Joseph Lilley, 18, all of Waynesburg -- were taken via ambulance to Ruby Memorial Hospital. The injured are all expected to survive, although some were left with "serious" injuries, Trooper Lemansky said.

Because little remained of the SUV, investigators will rely on autopsy results and evidence gathered during accident reconstruction to determine whether the teenagers were wearing seat belts.

The truck camper sustained only minor damage and its occupants -- Warren and Adrienne Glotfelty of McHenry, Md. -- were uninjured, police said.

Five hours after the crash, troopers were still collecting witness statements and physical evidence from the crash scene, a process that snarled traffic for hours in an area where I-79 serves as an artery for many communities.

State police from the Washington barracks were called in to help redirect southbound traffic off the interstate at the Marianna exit, or mile marker 23, onto Route 19 and back on to the interstate. The highway had reopened by 11 p.m.

That stretch is "no more so" a problem than other sections of the highway, making it difficult to determine early on whether speed or other factors might have contributed to the crash, police said.

"The circumstances that led to the collision are still under investigation," he said.

Liz Navratil: lnavratil@post-gazette.com.

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