CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio — An 18-year-old driver was killed and her 19-year-old passenger injured when their car slid off a wet road and struck a tree in Pickaway County late Monday, authorities said.
Pickaway County Sheriff Matthew O. Hafey said the sheriff’s office communications center received an automated iPhone crash notification at 11:46 p.m. on Tuesday in the area of Welch Road and Lane Road. Moments later, a 911 caller reported a single-vehicle crash at the same location.
Deputies arriving at the scene found a silver 2011 Volkswagen Jetta that had crashed into a tree. Investigators determined the car was traveling north on Welch Road when it slid off the right side of the roadway, continued through wet grass, and then struck the tree.
The driver, Kyla M. Caudy, 18, of Lockbourne, was taken by Scioto Township Fire and EMS to Mount Carmel Grove City hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
The passenger, Ciara C. Rehahn, 19, of Orient, was transported by Jackson Township EMS to Grant Medical Center in Columbus with injuries that were not considered life-threatening.
Sheriff Hafey thanked the Commercial Point Police Department, the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Scioto Township Fire and EMS, and Jackson Township Fire and EMS for their assistance at the scene.
The crash remains under investigation by the Pickaway County Sheriff’s Office.