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The Niemuth Family - Newspaper Articles

-- Carrie Kay (Niemoth) Jones --


One woman killed, one injured in two-vehicle accident
By Kris Epley
A Grand Island woman was killed and a St. Libory woman injured Monday evening in a two-vehicle
accident in Hall County.
Carrie Jones, 28, was killed when her car, a 1987 Buick, collided with a 1991 GMC pickup driven by
Valara Menke, 30, of St. Libory.
Hall County sheriff's Chief Deputy Chris Rea said both women were thrown from their vehicles on impact,
and that Jones was found under Menke's truck. Neither woman was wearing a seatbelt.
Both were transported to Grand Island's St. Francis Medical Center, where Jones was pronounced dead.
Menke was still being examined at the hospital at 10 p.m. A nursing supervisor there would not say whether Menke would be admitted or released. Rea was able to interview Menke after she arrived at the hospital, but he said she was not able to provide much information about the collision.
The accident happened just before 6 p.m. Monday at the intersection of Sky Park and Prairie roads, an
intersection that has no stop signs. There are cornfields on both sides of the road, but Rea said it's not clear if that was a factor in the accident.
"From a distance, it might obstruct the view, but when you're up at the intersection it shouldn't," said
Rea. "I can't say it wasn't a contributing factor, but I also can't say it was."
An empty child restraint seat in one of the vehicles initially fueled concerns that a child may have been
inside and ejected when the collision occurred. Rea said there was no child or other passengers in either vehicle.
The accident remains under investigation by the Hall County Sheriff's Department.
 
[Grand Island Daily Indpendent, September 25, 2001]

Injured woman treated and released following fatal accident
By Sarah Schulz
A St. Libory woman was treated and released at St. Francis Medical Center Monday night following a
two-vehicle accident that killed a Grand Island woman.
Valara Menke, 30, of St. Libory, was injured when the 1991 GMC pickup she was driving collided with a
1987 Buick driven by Carrie Jones, 28, of Grand Island, said Hall County Chief Deputy Sheriff Chris Rea.
Both women were ejected from their vehicles and Jones was found under Menke's truck, he said.
Neither woman was wearing a seatbelt.
Both were transported to St. Francis, where Jones was pronounced dead.
The accident, which happened just before 6 p.m. Monday at the intersection of Sky Park and Prairie
roads, is being investigated by the Sheriff's Department accident reconstructionist, Rea said.
 
[Source: Grand Island Daily Independent, September 26, 2001]

Deadly week on the road Sept. 22-28 was the deadliest week of the year on Nebraska roads
By Sarah Schulz
This last week has become the deadliest week of the year on Nebraska roads with 13 traffic deaths
reported as of Friday morning.
According to a release from AAA Nebraska, one person was killed while operating a bicycle, three people
were killed in motorcycle accidents and nine people lost their lives in motor vehicle crashes.
One of the fatalities occurred on Monday night in Grand Island. Carrie Jones, 28, of Grand Island was
killed when the 1987 Buick she was driving collided with a 1991 GMC pickup driven by Valara Menke, 30, of St. Libory, sheriff's officials said.
The accident was at the intersection of Sky Park and Prairie roads. Neither woman was wearing a seat
belt, and both of them were ejected from their vehicles, sheriff's officials said.
According to AAA Nebraska, although traffic deaths for 2001 are 17 percent below what they were at this
same time a year ago, September's losses are 42 percent higher than the fatalities reported in September 2000.
An increase in roadway traffic as the result of the temporary shutdown of the nation's airway system may
be partially to blame, according to AAA.
The Nebraska Department of Roads reported that, after the terrorists attacks on Sept. 11, traffic at
checkpoints along Interstate 80 increased from 10 percent to 25 percent compared to the volume numbers recorded last year.
To keep Nebraska roadways safe, AAA reminds motorists to obey all speed limits especially in
construction zones, maintain a safe following distance, refrain from using cell phones while driving, and always wear a seat belt.
According to the Associated Press there have been 176 deaths on Nebraska roads this year compared to
203 at the same time last year.
 
[Source: Grand Island Daily Independent, September 29, 2001]

©2003-2006 Lori Niemuth

Last updated: June 18, 2006

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