One dies in 3-car collision

Jace Radke

Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2001 | 10:53 a.m.

Kristie Cunningham knew she couldn't get the driver out of the mangled remains of a Lincoln Continental after three cars collided near her home Tuesday night, so she did the only thing she could think of.

"I just talked to him and tried to comfort him," Cunningham said. "You can't really move someone in an accident like that, so I just talked to the guy and told him help was on the way."

Help soon arrived at the intersection of Jones Boulevard and Alta Drive, where Metro Police say a motorist running a red light led to the three-car pileup that left another driver dead and sent the driver of the Lincoln and the other motorist to University Medical Center.

The accident occurred about 7 p.m. when a pickup and the Lincoln were headed south on Jones through the intersection at Alta, Sgt. Curt Albert said.

"It appears that a little Nissan headed west on Alta ran the red light and hit the pickup, causing it to hit the Lincoln," Albert said.

All three cars careened up onto the sidewalk and into a fence on the southwest corner of the intersection. The pickup ended up coming to a rest halfway on top of the Lincoln.

The driver of the pickup, 70-year-old Leo Carroll of Las Vegas, was pronounced dead at the scene, and extrication tools were used to pull the roof off the Lincoln to free the driver. The drivers of the Lincoln and the Nissan were taken to UMC with what are believed to be non-life-threatening injuries.

Cunningham said she can remember several bad accidents at the intersection of Alta and Jones.

"We have them pretty often, so people around here are pretty use to it," Cunningham said. "It was good to see a lot of Samaritans out here trying to help."