BERLIN HEIGHTS, Ohio -- The State Highway Patrol says a mother and her unborn child have been killed in a multi-vehicle pileup that shut down the westbound lanes of the Ohio Turnpike.
The accident happened just east of the Sandusky exit in Fulton County. At approximately 11:30 a.m., the Berea Dispatch Center received calls of a multi-vehicle serious injury crash. Investigation at the scene determined a total of eight vehicles, five of which were commercial tractor trailers, had collided in the roadway.
The crash scene completely blocked all westbound lanes of the Turnpike.
Beverly Smith, 32, of Middleville, Michigan, and her unborn child died as a result of injuries. Her husband, Eric Smith, 33, suffered serious but non-life threatening injuries. Mrs. Smith was a passenger in a 2012 Ford F 150 driven by her husband at the time of the crash.
The Smith family was trapped in the vehicle for an extended period of time due to the pick-up being stuck under the trailer of a commercial vehicle. Once out of the vehicle, the couple was taken to Firelands Hospital in Sandusky.
A total of six other people were injured as a result of this crash. All six refused treatment.
Officials have opened one westbound lane, while two other lanes remain closed.
Heavy blowing snow made travel difficult across Ohio on Saturday.
The crash remains under investigation.
