Delaware Firefighters

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Comment by Kristin Livesay on April 16, 2009 at 12:09pm

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Comment by robert roth on November 10, 2008 at 11:39pm

In what is believed to be the state’s deadliest accident, six people were killed Monday afternoon in a head-on collision near Frederica.

Delaware State Police said the crash happened about 3:35 p.m. on Carpenter Bridge Road just north of Roesville Road.

Two sport utility vehicles – a 2004 Ford Explorer driven by Michael E. Miller, 34, of Frederica, and a 1999 Ford Explorer driven by Kelly D. Rinaldi, 36, of Harrington – heading in opposite directions collided on the two-lane road and burst into flames, state police Cpl. Bruce Harris said.

Also in the 1999 Explorer were four of Rinaldi’s children – Jacob Rinaldi, 15; Jessup Crow, 5; Kyle Crow, 5; and Kaylee Crow, 7, all of Harrington.
Miller was the lone occupant of the 2004 Explorer.

“All of them were pronounced dead on the scene,” Harris said.

Police said both vehicles were fully engulfed in flames and the bodies were badly burned.

Paramedics assisted with the accident and the Department of Transportation helped divert traffic around the crash area.

The exact cause of the crash is under investigation.

Neighbors said the accident occurred just before Roesville Road on the two-lane highway that leads from Frederica to Harrington – about three-tenths of a mile from the ILC Dover plant.

Signs after exiting Frederica warn drivers of the lowered speed limit of 40 mph and of the winding road that cuts through wooded areas and farmland.

Just near the crash site, a road sign posts a lower speed limit of 35 mph and warns of children playing.

“It was horrible,” said Matt Bethel, who was driving on Roesville Road when he saw a white plume of smoke coming from Carpenter Bridge Road. As he got closer, Bethel said the smoke became black and he could see flames coming from the SUVs. “I’d never seen cars go up like that.”

Bethel said he pulled over and walked toward the burning wreck before emergency crews arrived on the scene. Bethel said he could see one of the vehicles’ air bags had deployed and also saw the driver’s-side door open.

Bethel said he called 911 and was told to keep a safe distance as operators feared the vehicles could explode.

“I basically hung out and watched them burn,” he said. “It’s hard to deal with.”

The 2-mile stretch of Carpenter Bridge Road between Del. 12 and Roesville Road reopened about 8 p.m., police said..

Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh of the Delaware State Police said Monday’s accident is the deadliest in the state “in recent history.”