HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — A traffic crash that killed a 5-year-old girl is under investigation by Ottawa County Sheriff’s authorities.
Deputies were called to eastbound I-196 at 84th Avenue near a road-construction zone in Zeeland Township just before 6:45 p.m. Friday, Oct. 1, 2021.
As traffic approaching the construction zone slowed to shift to the right travel lane, a white 2016 Audi Q5, with a 45-year-old Holland man at the wheel was traveling in the left lane at a speed higher than other vehicles in the area, according to Lt. Eric Westveer. As the Holland man’s car approached a cluster of slower vehicles, he braked suddenly, going into the right lane, Westveer said in an email to media.
The Audi hit the rear of a gray 2020 Ford F150, with a 65-year-old Texas woman at the wheel. The force of that crash sent the Ford F150 into a white 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee, with a 48-year-old Iowa man at the wheel.
The Holland man went by AMR Ambulance to Spectrum Zeeland for treatment of what police called minor injuries. The 5-year-old girl who has been a passenger in his car, suffered critical injuries, and was later pronounced dead at an area hospital, according to Westveer.
The Texas woman went by AMR Ambulance to Spectrum Zeeland for treatment of what police called minor injuries. The Iowa man was not physically injured in the crash.
Eastbound I-196 is closed for an extended period of time to complete the investigation, and Westveer advised drivers to seek an alternate route.
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