THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 5, 1996 TAG: 9607050239
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PAUL SOUTH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: KILL DEVIL HILLS LENGTH: 30 lines
A 49-year-old Richmond, Va., woman had to be cut from her vehicle by the jaws of life early Thursday morning after a two-vehicle accident at the intersection of U.S. Highway 158 and Sothel Street.
Rebecca Stevens was one of three people hurt in the wreck, which occurred at 7:31 a.m. Rescue personnel worked for about 30 minutes to get Stevens out of her late-model Ford Thunderbird. She was taken by Dare MedFlight to Sentara Norfolk General, where she is in stable condition.
The names of the two injured passengers in the other vehicle - a late-model GMC Jimmy - were not available. They were taken to Outer Banks Medical Center, police said.
Kill Devil Hills Police Sgt. Michael Jasielin said a seat belt saved Stevens' life.
``If it hadn't been for the seat belts, we probably wouldn't have needed to fly her out,'' Jasielin said.
Jasielin said firefighters from the Kill Devil Hills Fire Department removed the roof of the vehicle to free Stevens from the mangled wreckage.
Exact circumstances surrounding the accident are still under investigation, Jasielin said.
``We probably won't be able to know until tomorrow (Friday) exactly what happened,'' Jasielin said.
KEYWORDS: ACCIDENT TRAFFIC INJURIES RESCUE by CNB