Trooper Helps Save Victims from Burning Vehicle

JACKSON COUNTY – On May 14, 2005, a Trooper from the Ripley Detachment of the West Virginia State Police responded to a traffic crash and helped pull a number of victims from a burning van.

The crash occurred on Interstate 77 at the 126 mile marker, near the Kenna interchange, in Jackson County. A Pontiac Grand Prix driven by Melanie Mistich, 42, of Washington, WV crossed the median and into the path of a Plymouth minivan. The vehicles collided and the minivan burst into flames. Mistich and a passenger in the minivan, Ray D. Wickersham, 72, of Salem, OH died in the crash.

Trooper D. R. Herdman and other passers-by immediately began removing the victims from the vehicles. At one point, Trooper Herdman entered the burning van and removed a trapped female. Trooper Herdman attempted CPR on both fatal victims, but was unsuccessful. The other four victims of the crash are expected to make a full recovery.

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