By SCOTT CARLSON
North Platte Post
LINCOLN, Neb.-Chaos ensued in the moments following a crash on O Street in Lincoln on Memorial Day weekend, and in the chaos, a father was told that his daughter had been killed, when she was, in fact, alive.
The crash happened at around 10:47 p.m. on May 29 during an informally organized "Americruise" event.
Police said a black Ford Taurus, driven by Kyvell Stark, 18, was westbound on O St. when he struck a white eastbound Toyota Corolla driven by Emily Siebenhor, 20.
Police said, after the initial impact, both vehicles left the roadway and came to rest on the north sidewalk on the west side of the intersection of O and 52nd Streets, where numerous bystanders had gathered to observe the cruise event.
At least 20 bystanders suffered injuries.
Police said Siebenhor and her passenger, Edith Hermosillo, 22, were both pronounced dead at the scene.
It was determined that Stark had been traveling at around 90 mph and was under the influence of marijuana at the time of the crash. He's been charged with two counts of manslaughter, and two counts of driving under the influence with serious bodily injury
Among the 20 bystanders that were injured was Hannah Wadiso, 18, a recent graduate of Lincoln Southeast High School.
Wadiso was one of two people who were pinned beneath the Taurus. Wadiso was transported to a Lincoln hospital with serious injuries.
Someone at the scene of the crash contacted Wadiso's father, Tesfaye Alibe, and told him his daughter had been involved in the crash.
Alibe immediately responded to the scene and approached one of the vehicles that had been involved. Police said officers had just been attempting life-saving measures on the individual in the vehicle when Alibe approached them and told them it was Wadiso.
Lincoln police Chief Teresa Ewins said the officer confirmed to Alibe that the person in the vehicle was deceased.
Early the next morning, Alibe received another call telling him Wadiso was alive but in critical condition. She remains hospitalized with serious injuries.
On Friday, Chief Ewings issued a statement on the events:
We want to share with you some information I was just made aware of yesterday afternoon regarding the devastating Memorial Day weekend crash here in Lincoln that has since been reported on by the media.
While evaluating our response to the fatal crash that occurred at 52nd and ‘O’ Street on Sunday, May 29th we discovered a devastating miscommunication with a family member at the scene.
The family member, Tesfaye Alibe, was called to the scene by a bystander who told him his daughter, Hannah, was hit by a vehicle. When Mr. Alibe arrived, he ran to one of the cars involved in the crash, pointed to one of the deceased, and told the officers it was his daughter. The officers, who had just been performing life-saving measures, confirmed she had not survived.
Mr. Alibe stayed on scene with officers and as additional information was gathered on his daughter, it was determined she was not one of the young women killed in the vehicle. Hannah was one of the bystanders injured in the crash and had been taken to the hospital where she was in critical condition with life-threatening injuries.
We recognize the grief this tragic misunderstanding caused for all involved. We continue to work with Mr. Alibe and have acknowledged our sincere regret. We are grateful to report Hannah’s condition is improving and hope for the continued improvement of the 19 additional victims.
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