The wrong way triple fatality traffic crash early Sunday morning has claimed the life of a fourth victim.
Lt. Brandon Berens of the Allegan County Sheriff’s office confirmed the death of a 17-year-old girl Tuesday morning. A Portage Public Schools spokesperson confirmed she was a Community High School student.
Berens said the girl was a passenger in the car that was traveling in the correct direction.
The crash took place around 1 a.m. Sunday on northbound US-131 in Allegan County. Authorities told WWMT-TV Channel 3 that a driver, 38-year-old Erin Louise Jones from Grand Rapids, drove her Subaru Legacy the wrong way on US-131 and hit a Ford Fusion driven by Emmanuel Browning, 18, of Kalamazoo Sunday morning. Sheriff’s deputies said Jones left the highway at 129th Avenue, Exit No. 61, made a U-turn and then drove toward oncoming traffic for several miles.
Allegan County Sheriff’s Lt. Brandon Berens said Tuesday a fourth person, a 17-year-old Portage girl riding in the backseat of the Ford Fusion, died from her injuries. Authorities tried to catch up to the wrong-way driver, but she ultimately crashed into another car.
Three people died at the scene of the crash, including two 18-year-old men.
Three passengers in the vehicle traveling in the correct direction were taken to the hospital Sunday morning, deputies said. Three people, ranging in ages from 16 to 18, were in critical condition and on Tuesday morning, Berens confirmed that one of them — the 17-year-old girl — had died.
School officials had earlier had confirmed that one of the passengers taken to the hospital was a Comstock High School student, and one of the men killed had just graduated from Portage Northern High School.
Officials have not yet released the names of any of the victims.
