Oklahoma Bus Crash Kills Four College Softball Players
An Oklahoma bus crash involving a bus for North Central Texas College (NCTC) and an 18-wheeler has left four women on the NCTC softball team dead.
The bus was traveling with 15 players on board when the 18-wheeler reportedly crossed the median and smashed into it. Three of the girls died at the scene, while one died later at the hospital.
The victims were identified as Meagan Richardson, 19, Brooke Deckard, 20, Katelynn Woodlee, 18, and Jaiden Pelton, 20, by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. They were all from a small North Texas towns near campus, ABC13 notes.
Two team members remain in hospitals as of Sunday with one in critical condition, while the other nine players and the coach (also the driver) were treated and released.
One of the survivors, Samantha Maddin, posted a memorial photo to her Twitter account in honor of her teammates.
Maddin is also believed to have posted the last photo taken prior to the Oklahoma bus crash.
“This is the most traumatic event that NCTC has had in its 90 years of history,” said College President Brent Wallace at a news conference Saturday in Gainesville, Texas, about 60 miles south of the crash site on Interstate 35.
Rich Raymond, father of freshman player Emily Kuser, a survivor, said that the region where the girls played was very tight knit, and that they had known and played against one another since “six or seven years” of age.
“It’s just an amazing family of girls and athletes and coaches,” Raymond said in comments to ABC13. “Just such a tight community. And even if your girl isn’t going to the school there’s a lot of pain right now.”
The school has planned a “prayer vigil” for the victims of the Oklahoma bus crash that will take place Sunday evening.
Maddin also continues to request prayers for the survivors, the families of the four victims, and the two teammates who still aren’t out of the woods.
The hashtag #PrayForNCTC is also trending on Twitter.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first fatal accident to make national headlines this year. In August, The Inquisitr reported on a Long Island wreck that killed a family of five.
That wreck claimed the mother, grandmother, and all three children.
On behalf of everyone at The Inquisitr, we’re hoping for a speedy recovery for the girls involved in the Oklahoma bus crash still in the hospital, and our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involved.
