Nine people died, the National Transportation Safety Board came to the region to investigate, and West Texas was reminded how dangerous the travel that many take for granted can be.
The accident took place on Farm-to-Market Road 1788, a half-mile north of State Highway 115, east of the city of Andrews.
Those killed in the van were:
- Mauricio Sanchez, 19, of Mexico;
- Travis Garcia, 19, of Pleasanton;
- Karissa Raines, 21, of Fort Stockton;
- Laci Stone, 18, of Nocona;
- Jackson Zinn, 22, of Westminster, Colorado;
- Tiago Sousa, 18, of Portugal and
- head coach Tyler James, 26, of Hobbs.
Two other students in the van were seriously injured.
Also dead are 38-year-old Henrich Siemens and his 13-year-old son. They were traveling in the pickup.
The NTSB originally reported that the 13-year-old boy was behind the wheel of the Dodge truck that hit the van after a spare tire failed. The safety board then changed its findings to state that the father was driving the truck and investigators haven’t found evidence of a loss in tire pressure or any other indicators that the tire failed. The Associated Press did report toxicological testing showed the presence of methamphetamine in Siemens’ blood.
The University of the Southwest golf teams were traveling back to Hobbs, New Mexico, from a tournament in Midland when the collision took place at 8:17 p.m. The NTSB reported that the 11-person passenger van was towing an 8-foot cargo trailer.
The fiery crash was a cruel reminder to the hazards of living in West Texas and playing sports at the sub-Division I collegiate level. In both cases, long drives are part of the routine. In the case of the University of the Southwest golf teams, they would have had to make the 95-mile, one-way trip a total of four times on consecutive days to complete the tournament in Midland, which ultimately was cancelled because of the crash.
“In most cases, with this short of travel, we usually don’t stay the night,” Steve Appel, director of Athletics for the University of the Southwest, told the Reporter-Telegram in an email not long after the crash, “For example, in the past for baseball, we play on a Friday and Saturday and usually make the drive up each day. More teams than you think do this.”
The fact that the accident happened in Andrews County was coincidental but still a reminder of a different tragedy. In November 2021, three people died when an Andrews High School bus — traveling to Sweetwater for a playoff football game — was struck by a person driving the wrong way on Interstate 20. The NTSB has not released an accident report from that crash.
A final report and probable cause from the crash involving the University of the Southwest van was expected between 12 and 18 months from the time of the crash, NTSB officials said in March
Stories of the year…
No. 8 …Tragedy on West Texas roads: Golf team crash outside of Andrews
No. 9 … Hogan Park redo hits campaign snag
No. 10 … PSP demonstrates what it can do for Midland, Permian Basin
This news is republished from another source. You can check the original article here