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High-speed crash kills 3 in NW Dallas
'It's safe to say they were drunk,' officer says
11/10/2002
By JEFF MOSIER / The Dallas Morning News
Three men were killed and a fourth injured Saturday afternoon when their speeding car struck a utility pole and was cut in half, police said.
A passenger told police the men had been drinking since 6 a.m., authorities reported. Police said at least one of the victims smelled of alcohol, and investigators found beer bottles in the wreckage on Webb Chapel Road in northwest Dallas.
"It's a nice day and people want to get out, but there's no reason for this," said Dallas Police Senior Cpl. Ed Giampietro. "It's safe to say they were drunk."
Killed were Eduardo Ambriz-Gonzales, 29, and Wilmer Velasquez, 20, both of Dallas, and a 27-year-old man whose name police did not release pending notification of relatives. The survivor, 19, remained at Parkland Memorial Hospital Saturday night.
Cpl. Giampietro said that such accidents aren't always restricted to Friday and Saturday nights. It's all too common to find people drinking and speeding during daylight hours on weekends, he said. Margaret Collins, executive director of the Metroplex Chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, also said that drunken driving deaths are not unheard of during daylight hours.
"From the different families we work with, we know that drunk driving deaths occur at all hours of the day and night," Ms. Collins said. "It can happen at noon or at 5 o'clock in the afternoon, as well as the evening hours."
Ms. Collins stressed that people should appoint designated drivers or find other ways to avoid drinking and driving.
Saturday's accident occurred about 3 p.m.
Police said the car was speeding north on Webb Chapel Road, just south of Merrell Road, when the driver apparently lost control going around a curve. The car struck a utility pole in the median, severing the vehicle at the dashboard.
The passenger compartment and rear of the car stopped at the pole, and the engine compartment landed 100 feet away in the middle of the southbound lanes. Two of the victims were thrown from the car when it tore apart.
Cpl. Giampietro said that the car's speedometer was stuck on 62 mph, but that's not necessarily an indicator of the speed since it was such a violent crash. He said the car was probably traveling at least 80 mph, more than double the 35 mph speed limit on that part of Webb Chapel.
"Eighty miles an hour doesn't sound like much on a highway, but it is on a street like this," Cpl. Giampietro said.
Police said the crash could have been much worse. The front of the car and other debris landed only a few yards south of the intersection of Webb Chapel and Merrell.
Those southbound lanes were clear because the light at the intersection was red.
The accident was the Dallas area's third multiple-fatality accident in the last two weeks.
On Oct. 29, two high school seniors were killed and two injured when their SUV struck a guardrail on LBJ Freeway in Garland. The driver's blood-alcohol level was about triple the legal limit, police said.
Two Garland students died Thursday when their speeding car ran a red light and collided with an 18-wheeler on Marsh Lane near Royal Lane in northwest Dallas, within a mile of Saturday's accident. Alcohol was not believed to be a factor in Thursday's accident.
'It's safe to say they were drunk,' officer says
11/10/2002
By JEFF MOSIER / The Dallas Morning News
Three men were killed and a fourth injured Saturday afternoon when their speeding car struck a utility pole and was cut in half, police said.
A passenger told police the men had been drinking since 6 a.m., authorities reported. Police said at least one of the victims smelled of alcohol, and investigators found beer bottles in the wreckage on Webb Chapel Road in northwest Dallas.
"It's a nice day and people want to get out, but there's no reason for this," said Dallas Police Senior Cpl. Ed Giampietro. "It's safe to say they were drunk."
Killed were Eduardo Ambriz-Gonzales, 29, and Wilmer Velasquez, 20, both of Dallas, and a 27-year-old man whose name police did not release pending notification of relatives. The survivor, 19, remained at Parkland Memorial Hospital Saturday night.
Cpl. Giampietro said that such accidents aren't always restricted to Friday and Saturday nights. It's all too common to find people drinking and speeding during daylight hours on weekends, he said. Margaret Collins, executive director of the Metroplex Chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, also said that drunken driving deaths are not unheard of during daylight hours.
"From the different families we work with, we know that drunk driving deaths occur at all hours of the day and night," Ms. Collins said. "It can happen at noon or at 5 o'clock in the afternoon, as well as the evening hours."
Ms. Collins stressed that people should appoint designated drivers or find other ways to avoid drinking and driving.
Saturday's accident occurred about 3 p.m.
Police said the car was speeding north on Webb Chapel Road, just south of Merrell Road, when the driver apparently lost control going around a curve. The car struck a utility pole in the median, severing the vehicle at the dashboard.
The passenger compartment and rear of the car stopped at the pole, and the engine compartment landed 100 feet away in the middle of the southbound lanes. Two of the victims were thrown from the car when it tore apart.
Cpl. Giampietro said that the car's speedometer was stuck on 62 mph, but that's not necessarily an indicator of the speed since it was such a violent crash. He said the car was probably traveling at least 80 mph, more than double the 35 mph speed limit on that part of Webb Chapel.
"Eighty miles an hour doesn't sound like much on a highway, but it is on a street like this," Cpl. Giampietro said.
Police said the crash could have been much worse. The front of the car and other debris landed only a few yards south of the intersection of Webb Chapel and Merrell.
Those southbound lanes were clear because the light at the intersection was red.
The accident was the Dallas area's third multiple-fatality accident in the last two weeks.
On Oct. 29, two high school seniors were killed and two injured when their SUV struck a guardrail on LBJ Freeway in Garland. The driver's blood-alcohol level was about triple the legal limit, police said.
Two Garland students died Thursday when their speeding car ran a red light and collided with an 18-wheeler on Marsh Lane near Royal Lane in northwest Dallas, within a mile of Saturday's accident. Alcohol was not believed to be a factor in Thursday's accident.
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It sucks that it happened but if they were that stupid...then they were wasting my air!!
__________________
CHRIS
The next time you can't find a designated driver, just park in a tow a way zone!!
CHRIS
The next time you can't find a designated driver, just park in a tow a way zone!!
