07/20/2010 // West Palm Beach, FL, USA // Sandra Quinlan // Sandra Quinlan
Deerfield Beach, FL—A violent church van wreck claimed the life of an elderly woman and left sixteen others injured on Saturday night, July 17, 2010. The accident occurred as members of Deerfield Beach-based Saints Sanctuary Alliance Church traveled back home from a trip to Universal Studios in Orlando, as reported by the Miami Herald.
According to troopers from the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP), 49-year-old Jocelyne Jean-Gilles was driving a large 1999 Ford van along Florida’s Turnpike when she lost control on the van, sending it careening in a counterclockwise direction.
The church van went on to overturn, striking a guardrail before eventually coming to a rest. Another church van occupied by 15 passengers was following at the time. Its occupants remained at the scene after the accident.
Though emergency medical services (EMS) personnel were dispatched after accident, the eldest passenger in the van, 68-year-old Paulette Noel, succumbed to her injuries at the scene.
Paramedics rushed three people to area hospitals to be treated for serious injuries, while 13 others sustained non life-threatening injuries. They were reportedly taken to seven different hospitals.
Those injured in the crash were identified as follows:
• Jocelyne Jean-Gilles, 49
• Matieu Jean-Gilles, 58
• Gilbert Monestine, 46
• Gethro Monestine, 10
• Petite-Homme Dieuceul, 45
• Jacquelin Honorat, 49
• Kirby Jean-Gilles, 24
• Deondre Jean-Gilles, 9
• Sherline Jean-Gilles, 19
• Karen Bastien, 13
• Ashley Bastien, 9
• Alexis Baptist, 5
• Madine Joseph, 37
• Beatrice Noel, 34
• Eline Pierre, 46
• Emanuel Pierre, 7
WSVN provided a quote from Paulette Noel’s son Mathieu Noel, in which he stated, “I didn’t think this was going to happen, you know. No one of us think that’s going to happen. We’re not doing OK, because I lost my mom. She’s the only one that I can tell everything. She’s always been there for us.”
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
Legal News Reporter: Sandra Quinlan- Legal News for Florida Personal Injury Lawyers.
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