NORTH WEBSTER – A North Webster crash killed one man and injured six others, two critically, Sunday afternoon. According to a Kosciusko County Fatal Alcohol Crash Team press release, officers responded to the crash at 3:21 p.m. Sunday near the intersection of Esterbrook Drive and Ind. 13 in North Webster. A preliminary investigation determined that a truck, driven by Matthew Wagoner, 29, Syracuse, was traveling northbound on Ind. 13, crossed the center line and struck a southbound vehicle driven by Jeremy Valentine, 39, Wynnewood, Pa. Valentine was pronounced dead at the scene from blunt force trauma. Wagoner’s vehicle caught fire and was extinguished by several area fire departments due to the vehicle’s diesel fuel tank igniting. Wagoner was traveling with two juvenile passengers, Tyson, 2, and Matthew C. Wagoner, 5. All three were transported to Parkview Regional Medical Center, with Matthew C. Wagoner being classified in critical condition. Valentine was traveling with three passengers, Seana, 38, Molly, 9, and Luke Valentine, 7, and the three were transported to Lutheran Hospital, Fort Wayne, with Seana Valentine being classified as very critical. Multiple helicopters deployed from both Parkview Samaritan and Lutheran Air due to the number of injured passengers. Kosciusko County FACT and the North Webster Police Department were assisted at the scene by the Syracuse Police Department, North Webster/Tippecanoe Township Fire Department and EMS, Leesburg Fire Department, Syracuse/Turkey Creek Fire Department and EMS, Multi-Township EMS and the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department and Emergency Management. The crash is still under investigation pending legal alcohol and drug results of the drivers.
