WITNESS TO DEADLY OSAGE CRASH DESCRIBES RUSH TO HELP THOSE INSIDE
OSAGE COUNTY, Okla. – A crash in Osage County killed four people on Friday but those passing by the crash didn’t hesitate to start pulling people from their vehicles. They did whatever they could before first responders arrived on the scene. Tom Gallow[1] was driving south along Highway 99 Friday morning when he drove up to the fiery crash.
“I saw some smoke, so I started filming to see what it was,” said Gallow. State troopers said the two SUVs crashed on the highway around 11 a.m. with two people stuck inside each vehicle. One of the SUVs rolled in the crash.
Previous Story: 4 Killed In 2 Car Crash In Osage County; 2 Victims Identified[2] Gallow was one of the first people on the scene. He said with the wreck being in a rural area, it took emergency responders a while to get there, so he and others jumped into action,
“Pulled over, hopped out, ran up, tried to help in any way we could,” Gallow said. They began using whatever they had on hand, including a knife, to rescue the people inside. “There was an older gentleman there, gray hair, who had a knife on him, so we cut their seatbelts out and we were able to free them that way,” he said.
They went back and forth between the vehicles, getting almost everyone out before one of the SUVs burst into flames. “We were kind of helping on both cars. We dragged one woman from the car that was on fire and went back to the other car while the other guy was cutting the seatbelt of the other person still stuck in the car,” said Gallow.
Troopers say 72-year-old Rita Nelson and 37-year-old Brandy Morgan were in one of the SUVs, and both died at the scene.
Troopers have not yet identified the two victims from the other SUV.
OHP said the cause of the crash is still under investigation, but troopers said the road was wet at the time.
References
- ^ Tom Gallow (www.newson6.com)
- ^ 4 Killed In 2 Car Crash In Osage County; 2 Victims Identified (www.newson6.com)