Updated 1:50 a.m. Sunday: NORWALK, Conn. Members of a Danbury family riding in a pickup truck that overturned Saturday morning on the Route 7 connector in Norwalk suffered relatively minor injuries, a Connecticut State Trooper said.
The Toyota Tacoma pickup truck was struck by a Ford Focus driven by a Stamford woman as it drove north, one-tenth of a mile south of Exit 2, according to the police report. After the impact, the truck struck another vehicle.
According to the report written by State Trooper Peter Appiah: About 11:15 a.m., Patricia Grant, 56, of 15 Montauk Lane, was in the left lane in her 2004 Ford Focus. She veered into the center lane and hit the 2005 Toyota truck, owned by a Norwalk resident and driven by a 31-year-old Danbury man. The truck hit a vehicle in the right lane, a 2006 Toyota Corolla owned and driven by a 38-year-old Stamford man.
The truck swerved back to the right and center as the driver lost control, and it rolled over.
Two adults were in the front seat of the pickup truck, and one adult and three children, whose ages were not listed, were in the back seat. One child was riding without a seat belt or other restraint and suffered a leg injury. Another child had a shoulder belt on and had bruises and abrasions. The other was in a child safety seat and was not injured. A 29-year-old woman in the back seat suffered a back injury. Police did not indicate whether she used a seatbelt or other restraint.
Airbags in the front seat of the truck deployed. Both the driver and a 33-year-old woman suffered abrasions, and the driver complained of leg pain. The victims were taken to Bridgeport Hospital and St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport.
Airbags deployed in both other vehicles. Grant was with an 83-year-old Stamford man and a 41-year-old Stamford man. The driver of the Toyota Corolla was alone. No one in the cars was injured.
The truck's entire left side was damaged. The front right quarter panel of the Ford Focus was damaged. The left rear quarter panel of the Toyota Corolla was damaged.
State police were continuing to investigate.
Original story:
NORWALK, Conn. Six people were taken to Bridgeport hospitals Saturday morning after a rollover on Norwalk's Route 7 connector, Norwalk Fire Department Deputy Chief Chris King said in a written statement. Three of the victims were children, and at least one of them may have been thrown from the vehicle.
The account, according to King:
The three-car accident happened at about 11:15 a.m. on the northbound side of Route 7, between exits 1 and 2. Those injured were in a Toyota Tacoma pickup truck that was on its roof when the fire department arrived. They had been en route to a family function. Five of the occupants were out of the vehicle, and there were unconfirmed reports that at least one of the children was ejected from the vehicle. The sixth occupant was assisted from the vehicle by the first responders on scene. The other two vehicles received minor damage and no injuries were reported to their occupants.
Norwalk Hospital sent all three of its on-duty ambulances to the scene, while the surrounding towns sent personnel and ambulances to cover Norwalk for any additional medical calls. All patients were immobilized on backboards to protect against possible spinal injuries.
The condition of the occupants was not known at this time. They were being treated at Bridgeport Hospital and St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport. The Connecticut State Police accident reconstruction team was called in to investigate.
Firefighters remained on scene until 12:26 p.m. to provide assistance to the state police as the vehicle was righted and towed off the highway. One truck and a rescue and command car responded to the scene with a total of 10 personnel.
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