ELYRIA TOWNSHIP, Ohio — One woman is dead and three people, including a 1-year-old child, were injured in a two-car crash on West Ridge Road in Elyria Township early Tuesday morning. A suspected drunk driver has been charged in connection to the crash, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
“Someone’s poor decision to get behind the wheel while they were impaired changed a family’s life forever. A mother has been lost, a child is holding on for dear life,” OSHP Sgt. Ray Santiago told News 5.
The crash happened on West Ridge Road, just north of Dellefield Road, shortly after 1 a.m. Tuesday.
Troopers arrived at the scene to find two passenger vehicles off the east side of West Ridge Road. An investigation revealed a Ford Focus, driven by 30-year-old Lorain resident Kaylie Eskins and occupied by her 1-year-old son, had stopped at the intersection of the two roads to make a right turn to travel north of West Ridge Road.
A 2008 Audi, driven by 22-year-old Elyria resident Logan Townsley and occupied by a 28-year-old from Amherst, was traveling north on West Ridge Road when it struck the vehicle driven by Eskins, causing both vehicles to travel off the road.
OSHP reports one dead and 2 or 3 others transported from this crash on West Ridge Road north of Dellefield Road in Elyria Township. Van on its roof in the ditch and a car that had the roof removed by firefighters. Area still closed. pic.twitter.com/Q7E9DDX7ms
— Mike Vielhaber (@MVielhaber) March 29, 2022
Eskins was pronounced dead at the scene. Her son was life-flighted to Rainbow Babies University Hospital in Cleveland with serious injuries.
Townsley was transported to University Hospital in Elyria with minor injuries, and the passenger in Townsley's vehicle was transported to the same hospital with serious injuries.
The occupants in both vehicles were using seat belts and child safety seats.
Sgt. Santiago said, “When troopers investigate further, they discovered the driver of the Audi, the at-fault vehicle, was in fact impaired at the time. We do suspect extreme speeds were involved.”
OSHP confirmed that Townsley has been charged with aggravated vehicular assault, vehicular homicide-manslaughter, OVI and reckless operation.
“Hopefully folks look at this and truly feel the tragedy behind it and think twice before they make the decision to get behind the wheel while they’re impaired,” Sgt. Santiago said.
He explained there have been more than 100 OVI-related crashes in Lorain County so far in 2022.
“There are 100 crashes that are related to someone making a poor decision," he said. "And today there’s a family that has to cope with that and deal with someone else’s bad choice directly impacting their lives.“
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