Charges pending in fatal Loundon County accident

34-year-old Indiana woman killed in wreck

By News Sentinel staff
 

Charges are pending in a Sunday crash that killed one person and injured four others on Interstate 75 in Loudon County, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol.

The 1:32 p.m. crash involved two northbound vehicles, one of which pulled into the lane of the other, according to a report filed by THP Trooper Jimmy Whitt.

The crash killed 34-year-old Amy Cook, of Winchester, Ind. Cook was a passenger in a 2001 Jeep Laredo that swerved to avoid a van that merged into its lane near the 72 mile marker, Whitt wrote in his report.

The van, a 2004 Ford driven by Cheryl Ortiz, 29, of Phenix, Va., tried to merge into the left lane from the right lane, Whitt wrote. The vehicles did not touch.

The van carried four passengers, including two 4-year-old girls in child restraint seats. None of the van passengers was injured; they were properly restrained, Whitt stated in his report.

The Jeep driver, Nancy Cook, 59, also of Winchester, Ind., swerved to avoid contact with the merging van and lost control, Whitt wrote. She was listed Monday in critical condition at the University of Tennessee Medical Center.

Jeep passengers Norman Cook, 59; Skyler Smith, 10; and Elliott Cook, 10 months old, all of Winchester, Ind., also suffered injuries.

Norman Cook was in serious condition Monday at the UT Medical Center. Medical confidentiality prohibited the release of information concerning the conditions of Skyler Smith and Elliott Cook.

BACK
6/29/10