Four killed, five seriously injured in weekend crashes

Heather Rawlyk and Jen Lawson

Monday, Oct. 18, 2004 | 11:10 a.m.

Four people were killed and five others were seriously injured during the past three days on Las Vegas Valley roadways.

Two people died in one of the crashes, which occurred about 4:15 p.m. Saturday on Martin Luther King Boulevard near Lake Mead Boulevard, Metro Police said.

A van struck a 1985 Chevrolet Caprice, killing 41-year-old Sheila Lewis and 18-year-old Armone Smith, both of Las Vegas.

Police said the 1997 Chrysler van, driven by Dennis Shelton Jr., 64, of Las Vegas made a left turn from Martin Luther King onto Lake Mead and struck the Caprice, which was being driven by a 17-year-old.

The impact knocked Lewis and Smith out of the Caprice, and they were pronounced dead at University Medical Center. They were the 101st and 102nd people to die in traffic this year in Las Vegas and unincorporated Clark County, police said.

The teen driver of the Caprice suffered moderate injuries. Shelton and four children in the van, ages 7, 6, 9 and 10 were not hurt, police said.

The Nevada Highway Patrol investigated two of the weekend's other deadly crashes, Trooper Angie Chavera, spokeswoman for the Highway Patrol, said.

A man driving a silver Corvette died after his car flipped about 100 yards off Interstate 15, 10 miles south of Las Vegas, about 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Chavera said.

The driver was not wearing a seat belt and was thrown from the car. His name, age and hometown were not released this morning.

Also killed over the weekend was a 78-year-old Las Vegas woman. Ramona DeJesus apparently failed to stop at a stop sign on Decatur Boulevard at Blue Diamond Road just after 7 p.m., Chavera said.

The passenger side of her 2001 Dodge four-door sedan was hit by a 2001 Dodge pickup truck driven by a 79-year-old man. He was heading west on Blue Diamond Road.

Five other people -- including four in North Las Vegas -- suffered serious or critical injuries in other collisions, police said.

About 10 p.m. Sunday, 19-year-old Sylvia Villalobos of Las Vegas was injured when she tried to pass a car just after 10 p.m. on Betty Lane near Carey Avenue and lost control of her 1993 Honda, police said.

Villalobos' car veered off the road and hit a 1991 Honda driven by an 18-year-old man. Villalobos' car spun clockwise and rolled over.

Villalobos was taken to UMC with critical injuries. Speed appears to be the cause of the collision, police said.

About 2:45 a.m. Sunday, 25-year-old Vandana Reddy of Las Vegas was seriously injured when her silver Pontiac Grand Am hit a concrete barrier at the 3800 block of North Fifth Street.

North Las Vegas Police said Reddy was speeding when the Pontiac drifted left and jumped a curb onto a sidewalk and into a construction area.

The Pontiac passed through several orange and white barriers and road closure signs before slamming into the concrete barrier head-on, police said.

Reddy was taken to UMC's Trauma Center in critical condition with a partially-severed right foot, cuts on her face and broken bones in her hands.

Also, a Las Vegas man was seriously injured about 9:40 p.m. Saturday when he lost control of the silver Harley Davidson motorcycle he was driving on Hammer Lane near Ann Road.

Brad Plambeck was speeding down Hammer Lane approaching Elm View Street and apparently didn't realize that the road dead ends at that intersection, North Las Vegas Police said.

Plambeck skidded 150-feet and ran into a block wall, police said. He was taken to UMC's Trauma Center in critical condition with broken bones in his arms and pelvis.

Another motorcyclist, Matthew Rollins, 33, was seriously hurt about 7:30 p.m. Friday when his black Ninja motorcycle collided with a light blue Mercedes two-door sedan driven by 56-year-old Edwin Collins, police said.

Police said Collins drove the Mercedes out of the parking lot of the Texas Station onto West Lake Mead Boulevard and crossed several lanes before colliding with the motorcycle.

Rollins was taken to UMC's Trauma Center to be treated for numerous broken bones.

Also on Friday, Patricia Deary of Las Vegas sustained serious back injuries about 5:20 p.m. when the Geo Prism she was driving was rear-ended by a man driving a Lexus at the 3600 block of Martin Luther King Boulevard in North Las Vegas.

The driver of the Lexus, James McDaniel, was arrested for drunken driving, police said.

All of the crashes were still under investigation this morning, authorities said.