You can not do this. If you ever wondered what would happen if you cram 9 people into a Chevy TrailBlazer (including the back area that doesn't even have SEATS, let alone seat belts), then do 70 mph through a very hilly, turn-filled 45 mph zone, this story is for you:
From http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story. ... e=5/2/2005
SCHODACK -- A vehicle carrying nine young people crashed Sunday morning on Bunker Hill Road, killing a 20-year-old woman and seriously injuring several others, State Police said.
Candice Berrios of Chatham was pronounced dead at the scene of the 10:50 a.m. crash, State Police said.
Unsafe speed was a contributing factor in the spectacular crash, police said, but the cause remained under investigation Sunday night.
State Police said 19-year-old David C. McKay of Harmon Heights Road in Chatham was behind the wheel of a Chevrolet TrailBlazer that had eight passengers. He lost control of the vehicle and went off the road, authorities said.
When he tried to pull back onto the road, McKay overcorrected and the vehicle went off the left side of the road and struck an embankment, according to the State Police. The vehicle flipped and struck a utility pole.
Three passengers were ejected from the TrailBlazer. They and the others in the car ranged from 16 to 24 years of age. Police did not identified the passengers on Sunday.
The survivors were taken to area hospitals, including one patient who was flown to Albany Medical Center Hospital by helicopter.
It was not clear where the group was heading and why so many were in the vehicle.
The sound of the car hitting her mailbox was the first sound Alice Stenger heard before the SUV hit a second mailbox and then cut a utility pole in half before coming to rest.
Stenger's home of 41 years is across from the accident scene on Bunker Hill Road and Wood Lane. She said the SUV was speeding, as cars often do on this stretch of country road.
"It's beyond dangerous," Stenger said.
She said that after hearing the crash, she saw several people in their late teens climb out of the SUV looking dazed. The car narrowly missed hitting a car coming in the opposite direction, Stenger said.
Skid marks started a few feet north of Stenger's house and continued for about 50 feet, crossing the center line. The marks ended next to the post where the mailbox was sheared off.
Trooper John Kolach at the State Police Loudonville barracks said the driver was seriously injured. Other occupants of the car were hurt, while others walked away uninjured, Kolach said.
Although the utility pole was destroyed, power lines remained intact, Niagara Mohawk spokesman Tom Corbett said Sunday.
Leigh Hornbeck can be reached at 581-8438 or by e-mail at lhornbeck@timesunion.com.
Staff writer Mike Goodwin contributed to this story.
