Tpr. Caleb Starr’s vehicle was hit head-on

An on-duty Michigan State Police trooper from the Lakeview Post was involved in a two-vehicle, serious-injury crash on Grand River Avenue, west of Nash Highway just before 10 p.m. on Friday, July 10, 2020, in Ionia County’s Boston Township.

On scene investigation throughout the night revealed that 33-year-old Tpr. Caleb Starr’s Dodge Charger patrol vehicle was struck head-on by a Jeep SUV, which crossed the centerline from E/B Grand River Ave and into the trooper’s lane of travel as he was responding to a low-priority call for service in the area.

The trooper was the only occupant of the patrol vehicle and required extrication following the collision, before being flown by AeroMed to Spectrum-Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids and is currently in critical condition. As of Tuesday, his condition was not stable.

The female driver, a 28-year-old Utah woman, and lone occupant of the second vehicle, was transported by ambulance to Spectrum-Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids and is currently in critical condition, but stable.

Diagnostic investigation of the trooper’s patrol vehicle following the crash shows the trooper was traveling at a steady speed, below the posted speed limit of 55 mph on Grand River Ave prior to the crash, then braked, significantly reducing the patrol vehicle’s speed before the two vehicles collided.  Investigators are working to determine what factor(s) may have led to the other vehicle crossing the centerline and into the opposite lane of travel before striking the trooper’s vehicle.

Tpr. Starr has been with the Michigan State Police since September of 2018. He and his wife have two young children, a 2-1/2-year-old and a 5-year-old. Two fundraisers have been set up for the family. One is a Starr Strong t-shirt you can purchase for $20 with all proceeds going to the family. You can purchase one at https://www.hold-theline.com/product-page/starr-strong-t-shirt.

If you don’t want a t-shirt but just want to donate, you can contribute to their gofundme page at https://www.gofundme.com/f/fundraiser-for-family-of-tpr-caleb-starr.

The students at Cedar Trails Elementary received a special treat Wednesday when School Resource Officer Deputy Tom McCutcheon arranged a little “Show and Tell” for the kids out on the school lawn.

The theme was public safety, and on hand to show and tell the kids about what they do was the Cedar Springs Fire Department, Kent County Sheriff Department Mounted unit, the Grand Rapids Police Department, and even Aeromed dropped in for a visit.

Deputy McCutcheon has organized the Cedar Trails “Show and Tell” for the students the last few years. 

A Spencer Township man was seriously injured in a motorcycle crash last Friday, September 28.

According to the Kent County Sheriff Department, a motorist came across a crashed motorcycle lying in the roadway at Maston Lake Dr NE and Penelope Dr NE, in Spencer Township about 4:20 a.m. Spencer Township Fire and Rescue was first on the scene and found the rider off the roadway and unresponsive. 

Aeromed transported the man, identified as Raymond Hilliker, 39, of Spencer Township, to Butterworth Hospital, with life-threatening injuries.

Police said the preliminary investigation showed that the bike was traveling northeast on Maston Lake Drive and the rider failed to negotiate a curve in the roadway and crashed. There were no passengers on the bike, and the rider was not wearing a helmet. Speed and/or alcohol may be a factor, but the crash is still under investigation.

This SUV split in half after the man driving it reportedly lost control and rolled it Tuesday morning in Ensley Township. Post photo by J. Reed.

By Judy Reed

A crash in Ensley Township sent two people to the hospital Tuesday, and left a SUV ripped in half.

The crash occurred shortly after 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, December 5, on 136^th St, just west of Cottonwood. Sand Lake Fire and Rescue responded to the scene, and asked for assistance from Cedar Springs and Solon Fire Departments.

According to firefighters at the scene, the SUV, which they said looked to be a Ford Excursion, was apparently traveling eastbound on 136^th Street when the male driver may have lost control on the dirt road and rolled the vehicle, which then split the top from the frame. The man’s leg was partially under the vehicle when firefighters arrived, and a young female passenger was out of the vehicle walking around. Firefighters reported the man was unresponsive.

AeroMed was called to the scene, but the man was transported by ambulance instead. Post photo by J. Reed.

AeroMed was called to the scene, and landed on the dirt road despite high winds. However, when it came time to transport the man, it was found that they would have to land at the Ford Airport and then transport the man to Butterworth, rather than landing on the roof of the hospital. That trip would take about 40 minutes and an ambulance trip only 30 minutes, so the man was transported by ambulance instead. A second ambulance was dispatched for the female.

Newaygo County Sheriff’s deputies were in charge at the scene but declined to comment other than to say one car was involved in the crash. The Post contacted them twice on Wednesday to inquire about a news release, but at press time Wednesday evening they had not yet issued any information. We will update our story when we have more information.

Crash at Indian Lakes and Algoma. The driver of the silver car was transported to Butterworth Hospital by Aeromed with severe injuries. Post photo by J. Reed.

By Judy Reed

A young woman suffered severe injuries Tuesday afternoon and was transported to Butterworth hospital by Aeromed after her car was t-boned by a pickup truck at Indian Lakes and Algoma Avenue.

The crash occurred about 3:20 p.m. on Tuesday, November 14.

Kyle Rand, of Rockford, told The Post at the scene that he was driving home from work southbound on Algoma when he witnessed the crash. He said the silver car was westbound on Indian Lakes and did a “rolling stop” at the stop sign—slowed but did not completely stop—before continuing into the intersection. “She must not have seen him, the white truck (traveling northbound),” said Rand. He added that the driver of the truck tried to avoid her.

The Dodge Ram truck t-boned the silver Ford Taurus, and the car rolled and landed on its hood on the NW side of the intersection.

Rand said that he and another man both witnessed the crash and tried to help.

“I saw it happen and I freaked out. I saw baby blankets in the back of the car so I searched the car [for a baby] but it was only her,” he explained, referring to the driver of the car.

The man driving the truck, Dennis Wayne Hathaway, 60, of Ensley Township, was checked out at the scene for chest and leg pain by Rockford Ambulance.

The woman driving the silver Ford Taurus was identified by the Kent County Sheriff Department as Olivia Erin Anderson, 21, of Alpine Township. She was extricated from the car by Algoma and Solon Fire Departments and transported by Aeromed to Butterworth Hospital with head trauma.

The scene was cleared at 5:43 p.m.

A Morley woman who hit another vehicle from behind Friday morning in Reynolds Township may have been distracted by one of her children trying to loosen their seat belt.

According to the Montcalm County Sheriff Department, the crash occurred about 9:39 a.m. on Friday, June 16, in the 22000 block of West Howard City Road (M-82).

Police said that Vanessa Dyer, aged 25 from Morley, was travelling eastbound on Howard City Road (M-82) in her 2003 Chevrolet minivan with her three children, ages 2, 3, and 4. Joseph White, aged 61 from Muskegon, was travelling eastbound in front of Dyer, in his 1989 Chevrolet van. White was slowing to wait for traffic to clear so he could make a left turn into a private drive. A westbound 2000 Chevrolet Tracker, driven by Carl McNees, age 65, from Sand Lake, was slowing to make a right turn into the same private drive. Dyer told police she was distracted by her children and did not realize White was slowing on the roadway. Dyer struck White’s vehicle from behind causing White’s vehicle to strike McNees’ vehicle.
Dyer was pinned in her vehicle and the Jaws of Life had to be used to remove her. She suffered serious injuries and was flown to Spectrum Butterworth in Grand Rapids by Aeromed. Dyer’s three children were transported via ambulance to Spectrum for observation.
White was not injured in the crash. His wife, Gloria aged 56, was a passenger and was complaining of injuries. She sought her own medical treatment.
McNee sustained minor injuries during the crash and refused treatment. His wife, Donna, aged 63, was passenger and was not injured.
In addition to Aeromed, ambulances from the Montcalm County Emergency Medical Services and Life EMS assisted at the scene, as did the Howard City Fire Department.
Police believe that one of the Dyer children was attempting to undo his seat belt in the vehicle. However, the remaining occupants, and the occupants of the other vehicles, were properly restrained and there were no other known contributing factors that led to the collision.

The crash remains under investigation.

Christina Perales, 35, died in two-vehicle crash last weekend. Photo from the gofundme page set up to provide food, clothing and Christmas for her boys.

A 35-year-old Grant woman died last weekend when the car she was driving collided with a pickup truck.

According to the Kent County Sheriff Department, the crash occurred about 12:05 p.m. on Saturday, December 17 in Alpine Township.

The investigation showed that a 2015 Ford F150 pickup truck was headed westbound on 6 Mile Rd NW, and a 2002 Chevy Malibu was headed south on Baumhoff when they crashed. Police said it was undetermined if the Grant woman, the driver of the Chevy Malibu, had rolled through the stop sign, or made a complete stop and then pulled out into the intersection. The pickup truck had the right of way.

The driver of the Malibu, Christina Lenora Perales, 35, of Grant, died at the scene. The front seat passenger, Brent Thomas Aishe, 39, of Grant was taken to Spectrum Butterworth with serious injuries, including a broken left hip, cranial bleed, and abrasions on his elbow. One of the back seat passengers, Melinda Marie Lynch, 20, of Fremont was taken to Butterworth laceration to her forehead. The other back seat passenger, Dylan Rogers, 17, of Grant, was taken to Butterworth with a cranial bleed.

There were three occupants in the pickup truck, all from Essexville, Mich. The driver, Brent Joseph Raap, 45, was not injured. Passenger Benjamin Matthew Raap, 15, sustained a minor injury and was taken to the hospital by private transport, where he was treated and released. The third passenger, Judith Louis Mcelhinny-Raap, 45, was not injured.

Alcohol is not believed to be a factor in the crash.

Assisting at the scene was the Walker Police Department, Alpine Fire Department, Walker Fire Department, Aeromed, LIFE, Rockford, and AMR ambulance services.

The crash is still under investigation.

Christina was a single mom, and there is a gofundme page set up to help with food, clothes, and Christmas for her three boys. Go to https://www.gofundme.com/please-help-these-boys.

One involved firefighter from out of county department

There were two crashes in Oakfield Township, in the early morning hours of Thursday, July 7, and the second crash involved a firefighter from an out of county department that had self-dispatched to the first scene.

According to the Michigan State Police and Oakfield Fire Department Chief Sam Peterson, the first crash occurred at 1:15 a.m. at 14 Mile and Wabasis. Jennifer Cribs, 22, of Aurora, Colorado, was northbound on Wabasis, when she failed to stop at the stop sign at 14 Mile and was struck by an eastbound pickup truck driven by Daniel Heath, 30, of Greenville.

The woman was flown to Butterworth Hospital by AeroMed with serious injuries, and the man was sent to the hospital by ambulance.

While both Oakfield and Spencer Township Fire worked on the first scene, another crash report came in at 2:30 a.m. and involved a firefighter west of the scene of the first accident, in front of the Halfway Restaurant.

Police said that Joshua Crandall, 35, of Greenville, was driving eastbound on 14 Mile, and hit an unattended firefighter’s vehicle that was blocking eastbound traffic on 14 Mile, in front of the Halfway Restaurant. Police said that Crandall suffered minor injuries, and that alcohol was involved.

However, according to Oakfield Chief Sam Peterson, when they and Spencer Township arrived on scene, they found that the firefighter was not one of theirs. “It was discovered that the firefighter was from an out of county department, and had self-dispatched to the scene, skirting the incident command system,” said Peterson. “He was in a spot where we would not have had a (road) closure, and he was not visible by our command staff or working staff. Both departments worked quickly, effectively, and safely to secure both scenes, and treat patients at both scenes until care could be turned over to advanced life support.”

“At Oakfield Township Fire Department we work to keep scenes safe and patients safe and it is important to be vigilant around emergency scenes,” continued Peterson. “It also is important to know that we have the training and experience to be able to do so in a controlled and safe manner, and self-dispatching is never safe, as well as goes against incident command protocols. Here at Oakfield Township Fire we work hard to keep our township safe and will continue to do so. We have a great team that is ready to serve and protect the community 24 hours a day, and we will not let this incident set us back as a department.”

Devin Sebastian Tumbleson

A Crystal Township woman is in critical condition after a man she was riding with strangled her and pushed her from the vehicle.

According to the Montcalm County Sheriff Office, on Monday, May 23, two people were traveling on Berridge Road, in Eureka Township, south of Fenwick Road, looking for morel mushrooms, about 7:16 p.m., when they heard someone calling for help.

The two found a 19-year-old woman from Crystal, and she was badly injured, so the two took her to Spectrum United Memorial Hospital in Greenville for treatment. Montcalm County Sheriff’s Office responded to United Memorial regarding the assault victim. The Crystal woman told the deputy that she was traveling with a man in his car and that a disagreement arose between the two. The woman reported that the man became irate and assaulted her, including strangling her and pushing her out of his vehicle.

The victim was later flown from United Memorial to Spectrum Butterworth in Grand Rapids via AeroMed.

The suspect, identified as Devin Sebastian Tumbleson, age 28 from Belding, was initially arrested for aggravated assault and lodged at the Montcalm County Jail.

He was later charged with Assault With Intent To Do Great Bodily Harm Less Than Murder and Assault By Strangulation. Tumbleson was arraigned Tuesday afternoon and he remains behind bars with a $25,000.00 bond.

Police said the man and woman knew each other but were not involved in an intimate relationship.

The Crystal woman remains in the hospital listed in Critical Condition.

The Ionia County Sheriff’s Office and the Michigan State Police assisted the Sheriff’s Office.

The case remains under investigation.

Two people were sent to the hospital via Aeromed Tuesday morning after a crash at 17 Mile and Sparta Avenue. Post photo by J. Reed.

by Judy Reed

UPDATED with names May 18.

Four people were injured in a crash in Tyrone Township Tuesday morning, with two being sent to the hospital via AeroMed.

The accident occurred around 10:30 a.m. May 17, at the corner of 17 Mile and Sparta Avenue. According to the Michigan State Police, a 1998 tan Ford Windstar van was heading north on Sparta Avenue, when the driver disregarded the stop sign at 17 Mile Rd. and was hit in the front passenger side by a westbound 2010 white Chevy HHR. The vehicles rolled and landed in the yard of a home on the northwest corner of the intersection. There is a stop sign on Sparta Avenue, but not on 17 Mile.

This car was heading west on 17 Mile when it was hit by a northbound van at Sparta Ave. Post photo by J. Reed.

The driver of the HHR, Darryl Metzer, 28, of Clare, was transported to the hospital with minor injuries. He was the only occupant in the vehicle.

The driver of the van, Timothy Watkins, 38, of Sand Lake, was transported to the hospital by Rockford ambulance and is in stable condition.

Two people in this van were airlifted to the hospital via Aeromed and the other two passengers were transported by Rockford Ambulance after the van collided with a Chevy HHR Tuesday morning. Post photo by J. Reed.

Police said that the two rear passengers in the van, Mitchell Helton, 43, of Sand Lake, and Peggy Helton, 54, of Sand Lake, were not seatbelted, and were transported to Butterworth Hospital by AeroMed and are in serious condition.

The Michigan State Police, Kent County Sheriff Department, Sparta Fire and Rescue, and Kent City/Tyrone Township Fire and Rescue were all on the scene.

According to one witness at the scene, Laura Glidden, owner of the Cheap Buys Thrift Shop on the northeast corner of the intersection, she had just went out to her car seconds before the accident occurred. “I saw the white car go by, then heard the crash,” she said.

Glidden is worried about the number of accidents occurring at the intersection. “There was an accident here just last week. There have been eight accidents at this corner since I moved into the store a year and a half ago,” she remarked. She also said that during the afternoon hours when kids get out of school at Algoma Christian, which is located just north on Sparta Avenue, cars will speed through her parking lot, cutting through to avoid the buses. “What if a child is coming out of my store and is hit by a car?” she asked. “Do you think anyone will take a look at  putting another stop sign or light here now?”

The cars landed in the yard of James and Cindy Hart. Cindy said that she was in the backyard when she heard a “bang bang.” When she came around the house, she saw the cars. But she wasn’t surprised. “All of the cars end up in my yard,” she noted, including one last year that she said stopped only inches from the house.

She said her husband has spoken with the township about trying to get a light at the intersection. “He has talked to a lot of people over the last 19 years, but nothing has been done,” she said.

“That car hit that tree so hard that it took the top off,” she said pointing to her yard. “That’s why we have the trees. He (James) planted them because they (the township) won’t do anything.”

Hart also complained that no one completely cleans up after the crashes. She said that officials might sweep up some glass off the road, but that she and her husband end up cleaning up a lot of debris–and repairing their property. “When we try to get a copy of the police report to submit a claim to insurance for repairing our property, they (police) say we have to pay for it,” she said. “It doesn’t seem fair.”

The Post called the Kent County Road Commission to get the facts on how many accidents have occurred at this intersection, and to find out if any kind of a study has been done or is warranted. We are waiting to hear back from them.