Alcohol and speed are suspected in the cause of an accident that left one Maryland man dead and two others injured on Thursday, October 11.
According to police reports, 34-year-old Thomas Kegarise was the front-seat passenger of a 2009 Kia Spectra that went airborne and smashed into a home in nearby West Virginia shortly before 10:30 p.m.
His brother, 32-year-old Timothy Kegarise, was driving eastbound on Hedgesville Road when he lost control of the vehicle at the top of a small hill.
The vehicle crossed the centerline of West Virginia Route 9 and left the road completely. The Kia hit a fence and then went airborne for nearly 50 feet before smashing head-on into a residence along the 9000 block of Hedgesville Road.
Thomas Kegarise, a resident of Hagerstown, Maryland, was taken to Martinsburg City Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead from injuries he sustained in the accident.
Timothy Kegarise, also from Hagerstown, was rushed to Winchester Medical Center by helicopter. His condition was not immediately known.
A back-seat passenger, 21-year-old Frank Mason Jr. of Hancock, Maryland, was flown to INOVA Fairfax Hospital with injuries. His condition also was unknown.
West Virginia State Police are still investigating the cause of the accident and have released few details. However, they have acknowledged that alcohol and speed may have been contributing factors in the crash, which occurred less than 20 miles from the vehicle occupants’ homes.
The personal injury lawyers of Nickelsporn & Lundin express our sympathies to the families of the Kegarise brothers and Mr. Mason.