She now faces drunken driving, other charges in incident
By Patricia Bogumil
Staff writer
A 21-year-old Elkhorn woman was found unconscious in the front seat of her car, with natural gas hissing and spewing into the air, after she drove through a fence around a WE Energies main line gas junction station in Waterford township May 26.
Her vehicle hit a high-pressure natural gas line, breaking it open and venting natural gas into the air.
The crash happened near the sharp curve at Highway 20 and Honey Creek Road around 8 p.m.
The crash victim is identified as Vada Wirtz, 21, of Elkhorn.
Wirtz has since been cited for several traffic violations including drunken driving, passing in no passing zone, failure to keep vehicle under control, passing on a hill, failure to wear a safety belt, and failure to insure a motor vehicle.
She is scheduled to make an initial appearance in Racine County Circuit Court on the drunken driving charge on July 10.
Wirtz was pulled to safety that evening by Racine County Sheriff’s Lt. David Kinservik and Lt. Tom Nehring, who serves on both the Village of Waterford Fire Department and Tichigan Volunteer Fire Company.
Nehring, 26, lives about 2 miles away from the crash scene and said he drove straight to the crash site with his fiancée, Amanda Braun, who is a registered nurse and emergency medical technician.
At the scene, Nehring met up with Kinservik, who went to the driver’s door of the crashed sedan. Nehring went to the passenger side.
Looking in, Nehring saw Wirtz unconscious, slumped down and inverted upside down in the passenger seat area.
The passenger door wouldn’t open, Nehring said, but its window glass was broken and he reached through and shook Wirtz.
At first she did not respond, he said, but she woke up after being shaken a second time.
On the other side of the car, Kinservik opened up the driver’s door and pulled the driver out.
She couldn’t walk, Nehring said, so Kinservik carried her off a safe distance. They laid her down and Braun took over care of the driver until rescue arrived.
Wirtz was first transported to Aurora Memorial Hospital of Burlington, and then to Froedtert Memorial Hospital in Wauwatosa, for treatment of her injuries.
Meanwhile, Town of Waterford Police Officer Kayla Demarasse directed a crowd of bystanders to move back at least 1,000 feet from the scene, and ran to a nearby residence to alert the residents to leave until told it was safe to return.
The crash scene was hazardous, even scary, with natural gas leaking and hissing, but Nehring said the rescue was handled as “just one of those things – you make a decision to get in and get her out.”
Village Fire Chief Rick Mueller described Nehring as a “very competent and caring responder.”
Town police report
A driver who was traveling east along Highway 20 two cars ahead of Wirtz told police that Wirtz had tried to pass the two vehicles in front of her by moving into the westbound traffic lane.
The first try was made in a no-passing zone on a curve and was unsuccessful because of oncoming westbound traffic, the driver reported.
Wirtz again traveled into the westbound lane to try and pass, but was unsuccessful again due to more westbound traffic coming.
Wirtz then reportedly traveled at a high rate of speed, passed the vehicle directly in front of her in a no-passing zone, and then stayed in the westbound lane to try and pass the second vehicle.
The driver of that vehicle said she slowed so Wirtz could pass as soon as possible since they were driving up a hill and into another curve.
The driver said she then observed a westbound vehicle swerve to avoid a head-on collision with Wirtz, whose vehicle then spun in a circle several times before hitting the gas pipes.
The driver of the westbound vehicle who swerved to avoid a collision confirmed that Wirtz was traveling illegally in the westbound lane, according to the police report.
