Woah, well today was just a series of tragedies in the far southeast of the United States in the Sunshine State. Here's the real sphel:
Orlando 429's deadly Toll
Photo Credit: AA Roads https://www.aaroads.com/guides/fl-429/
Yesterday during the evening rush in Orlando on the 429 toll came with a deadly price. A newly made Toyota van was carrying the family on a nice road trip vacation while a pickup truck rear-ended the van causing it to rollover on the toll road.
A total of 8 people were in the van, all from Massachusetts. Out of the 8, 4 of them died, 2 others are also injured, but will survive, and 2 more unaffected from the car crash.
4 of the dead victims were the following:
3 people from the Smith Family, Whitman
Scarlett Smith (aged 5, killed at the crash scene)
Julie Smith (aged 41, killed at the crash scene)
Jackson Smith (aged 11, survived the crash, died at the hospital)
Josephine Fay (aged 76, killed at the crash scene), from Weymouth & related to the Smith Family
One of the people who was in the pickup truck was a recently licensed driver under the name of 26 year-old Lucas Dos Reis Lauredo. According to The Boston Globe, Lauredo was traveling at or near highway speed of 70 mph, the speed limit of the road at the time of the impact. He felt very remorse about the people who were affected by that tragic incident.
He was later blood tested to see whether or not he was driving under the influence, but wasn't actually drunk. Charges are pending for him, most likely for vehicular homicide, but as of right now it's hard to tell who is responsible for this tragedy.
Photo credit: Positively Osceola. Read more about the incident here: https://www.positivelyosceola.com/rollover-crash-on-state-road-429-in-osceola-county-leaves-3-dead-fhp-says/
Here would be the possible outcomes:
1. The speed limit posted on that particular stretch of the highway could be to blame, particularly because of the location of the incident and how populated and dense Kissimmee is. Just remember, the speed limit there is 70 mph.
However, it is unknown at this point whether or not if there were past incidents on 429 toll road. If this is to blame, Florida's department of transportation or whoever manages those toll road will come under fire.
2. The driver might've recklessly driven on the road, but that seems very unlikely.
3. The newly-licensed driver of the pickup truck could've have sleep anemia (similar to the Green Line trolley incident in 2008)
4. The newly-licensed driver was possibly texting while driving and not paying attention on the road (as of January 1, 2020, it is illegal to text and drive in the state of Florida).
As of now, there is no further evidence who was driving in van so it would be nearly impossible at this point to put the blame on the family.
Meanwhile back home in Whitman, the entire town can feel the tragic loss of 4 great people.
Whitman-Hanson Regional School Superintendent Jeffrey Szymaniak said the following at the police station earlier today:
“When tragedy hits, it affects everyone. We are a huge family in the district. We mourn for them and everyone involved in this tragedy down in Florida."
Counselors will be available to those in need in that school district. My condolences and prayers goes to the Smith Family, its relatives and friends who were involved in this terrible incident.
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More on the effects at home:
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Ferry to Tropic Hell
Photo Credit: News Break https://www.newsbreak.com/florida/miami/news/0OB2uNJQ/car-reportedly-falls-off-fisher-island-ferry-into-water
In addition to a somber tragic in Orlando, 2 people also died on the so called "haunted waters of Miami." It also happened yesterday at around 5pm on a Fisher Island Ferry boat named Pelican, where a blue Mercedes-Benz fell from that boat sunk into Government Cut.
The car was later rescued by the diver from Miami-Dade Fire, where they found two "unresponsive ladies" who were 63-year-old Emma Afra who lives on Fisher Island, and her friend 75-year-old Viviane Brahms of Harrison, New York. Afra was involved with a nonprofit organization called Kristi House, that puts an attempt to end child abuse and child sexual trafficking.
As of now, the cause of the incident is unknown, but it is possible a safety portion on the front of the boat could be loose and the blue Mercedes could've not been secured tightly from falling into the water and is under investigation. I'll keep you guys updated on the loop.
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