GREEN TOWNSHIP, Ohio — A 17-year-old driver and a 51-year-old passenger were taken to the hospital after a head-on crash on State Route 159 near Clayburne Boulevard in Green Township on Monday night, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
Troopers from the Chillicothe Post responded after the patrol’s Jackson Communication Center received a report of the two-vehicle crash at about 9:55 p.m. Oct. 26, the patrol said.
A 2015 Kia Sorento driven by Merissa Smallridge, 17, of Laurelville, was traveling northeast on State Route 159 when it was struck by a 2019 Ford F-150 driven by Benjamin Beechler, 44, of Chillicothe, according to the patrol.
Christopher Compher, 51, of Chillicothe, a passenger in the Ford F-150, sustained serious injuries in the crash, the patrol said. He was taken to Adena Regional Medical Center by Green Township EMS and later flown to Grant Medical Center by Medflight.
Beechler sustained minor injuries and was treated at the scene, the patrol said. Smallridge was taken to Adena Regional Medical Center by Springfield Township EMS with minor injuries and was later transferred to Children’s Hospital.
The Highway Patrol was assisted at the scene by Green Township EMS, Springfield Township EMS and Penwell’s Towing. State Route 159 south was closed for about three hours while the crash was investigated, according to the patrol.
The crash remains under investigation.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
