One teen dead, two injured after crash in Howard County

A 15-year-old boy is dead and two teens are injured after a crash in Howard County.

It happened just after 12:30 a.m. Saturday morning when the driver veered off the right side of the road, struck a ditch and then overturned.

One of the passengers, a 15-year-old boy, was pronounced dead at the scene. The other passenger, a 15-year-old girl, was air lifted to the hospital with serious injuries. The 17-year-old driver was taken to the hospital with moderate injuries.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, none of the teens were wearing seat belts.

Corporal Gerry West with the highway patrol uses the example of a roller coaster to explain the importance of wearing a seat belt.

The seat belt keeps you in place in the vehicle especially if it overturns,” said Corporal Gerry West with the highway patrol. “Some of these roller coasters will go upside down and you would never get on a roller coaster and not put on the safety equipment that they latch in place because you’d fall out or get jostled around.”

This marks the Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop F’s sixth fatality in March and 14th fatality in 2016.