COLUMBUS – Neither a 4-year-old boy who was killed in an accident on the SW Side yesterday nor his 6-year-old brother, who was critically injured, were wearing seatbelts when their van was rear-ended while stopped in heavy traffic on the Outerbelt near Grove City Sunday afternoon.
Matthew Cremeans was pronounced dead at Nationwide Children’s Hospital while his brother, Danny, remains in critical condition after the multi-vehicle accident on I-270 near U.S. Route 62, Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin said.
The boys were in the backseat of a van driven by their father, 29-year-old Robert Cremeans, of New Lexington, when the van was struck from behind by an SUV in the westbound lanes of I-270 just east of U.S. Route 62 in Jackson Township shortly after 12:30 p.m., Baldwin said.
The boys were not wearing seat belts or in a car seat and were thrown through the rear window of the van, Baldwin said.
After the Cremeans’ van was struck by a Ford Escape driven by a Sarah Christman, 29, of Grove City, the van struck a Pontiac Sunfire driven by David Johnson, 28, also of Grove City, which in turn hit a Toyota Carolla driven by Caleb Ramos, 16, of Lebanon, Baldwin said.
There are no indications of drugs or alcohol, being involved in this crash, which remains under investigation.