Last Updated: Saturday, Dec. 8, 9:12 a.m.
Matthew Yarborough, 14, was critically injured and a 12-year-old boy had minor injuries following a two-vehicle crash on Palm Coast Parkway and Old Kings Road at 7:40 this evening (Dec. 7). Two adults involved in the crash–both drivers–were not injured.
The wreck diverted traffic patterns around the intersection for over 90 minutes.
Ann Yarborough was at the wheel of the four-door dark-gray Cobalt, driving south on Old Kings Road. Edward Blanford Sr., 32, was at the wheel of a white Chevrolet Silverado pick-up truck, driving east on Palm Coast Parkway. He said he had a green light, and couldn’t tell what direction the other car had been coming from at the time of the collision. (When he spoke briefly as he stood in front of his truck after the wreck, he was mostly concerned about the fate of the boy.)
When the Silverado struck the Cobalt, each vehicle went in opposite directions in an arc. The Cobalt ended up ramming into the median’s hedges, in front of the Palm Coast welcome sign, facing northeast. The Silverado ended up in the grass in front of CVS Pharmacy, facing southeast.
The Silverado’s left-front had struck the Cobalt broadside, against the hinges of the passenger door, smashing in that side and requiring Matthew, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, to be extracted. The passenger side of the front windshield was smashed, as was the passenger window. Saturday morning authorities said “everybody is going to be OK,” including Matthew.
Flagler County Fire Flight was called in for a trauma evacuation, but the helicopter could not fly in the poor weather: the ceiling was low, and it drizzled lightly all evening. The boy was evacuated by ground to Halifax hospital’s trauma unit, in Daytona Beach. The 12-year-old boy, a friend of the Yarboroughs’, was sitting in the back seat. He had pain in his left knee, and was taken to Florida Hospital Flagler.
No one else was in the Silverado other than Blanford. All occupants of both vehicles are believed to be from Palm Coast. (The Silverado had Georgia license plates, but a bumper sticker from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, the Catholic Church and school, on Belle Terre Parkway.)
It is not clear why the wreck unfolded as it did, but it is almost certain that one of the two vehicles blew through a red light, since one of the two vehicles violated the other’s right of way. The Florida Highway Patrol’s investigation was too preliminary this evening to determine who was at fault. The Palm Coast Parkway-Old Kings Road intersection is one of the locations of the city’s red-light spy cameras, installed at many locations ostensibly to improve intersection safety. The cameras record events such as wrecks at intersections, and have been useful to law enforcement investigators reconstructing wreck scenes.
The point of impact was clearly visible in the pavement, almost dead center of the intersection, if slightly to the south of the parkway’s median: The Cobalt from that point to the median dug an arc through the pavement.
The Palm Coast Fire Department, Flagler County Fire Rescue, the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office and the Palm Coast Fire Police responded to the scene. The fire police redirected traffic away from the center of the intersection, which was covered in shards, until fire police personnel cleared it, and a John’s Towing truck towed the two vehicles, around 9 p.m.
It was only the first of three serious wrecks overnight.
glad fly says
i pray all those involved are ok. i never took that for a dangerous intersection.
Heather says
Praying for all involved!
Profiler says
Praying for the little boy and his family.
glide10 says
traffic has been more heavy lately with more people in town, for the holidays and snow birds coming down. Everyone needs to be more cautious nad take more time getting to where they need to go.
Ben Dover says
I almost was involved in it, after the fact , I was heading to g/f`s house down in the Woodlands , was heading east on Palm Coast Parkway , was in turning lane to to turn onto Old Kings when one of Palm Coast`s lobotomized drivers, decides he`s just gonna cut in my lane at last second, he`s lucky I wasn`t rubber necking the accident, and paying attention to his stupidity, otherwise I`d of caved in his passenger side door, amazes me how someone sitting right there, seeing what happens when you don t pay attention , just decides to pull out into moving traffic without looking, you were in a brown Nissan pick up with extra cab , Pay Attention !!!!
tulip says
This may be a time when the cameras will show exactly who is at fault. Makes them very worthwhile.
Hope the innocent passengers will be ok.
dadgum says
I believe that intersection has the most “Red Light Camera” infractions. It is also a wide intersection which takes more time to cross. Some people drive like maniacs as if they were going to miss there last meal.
glad fly says
proof that red light cameras are a gimmick and don’t work.
Billybob says
tulip: We’ve all been told the red light cameras are for our safety to prevent law breakers from running red lights. But this intersection already has red light cameras and still someone ran a red light. That makes me realize that red light cameras can’t prevent red light running. And if the point of red light cameras is to increase safety by preventing red light running then here we have clear evidence that it simply doesn’t work.
I appreciate your point that red light cameras may help with accident reconstruction and assigning guilt to accidents after they happen. I am just hoping people realize red light cameras do not increase safety, in fact they can lead to a false sense of safety.
As almost every intersection in Palm Coast gets a red light camera installed, it may be tempting to let your guard down (thinking nobody is going to run a red light so you don’t have to watch for it). The fact is it is distracted and impaired drivers that run red lights and cause collisions and there is nothing a red light camera can do to stop them. It is up to your own defensive driving to prevent collisions as red light cameras have been proven time and again (including in this case) to simply be a revenue generating device, not a safety device.
Palmcoastguy says
For everyone that stopped to help last night thank you! The first responders were fantastic and so nice! My prayers are with th people in the other car!
haw creek girl says
Matthew was released from Halifax early this morning….Thanks to all who helped my friend Ann during rhis awful accident. The hand if the Lord protected her from this accident being much worse. Continued prayers for all involved much appreciated.
whodat says
Just thinking how many are out of County/State and the return rate compared to Flagler County residents???
Sweat says
We have laws against murder, yet people still kill. I am much more careful now not to try to beat the light.
Gia says
That what happen when you run a red light.
Magnolia says
Geeze, people…..SLOW DOWN!!!
Ben Dover says
They would slow down if they weren t busy trying to beat another 4 minute light , these city counsel people rigged our lights and people are fed up with getting stuck at each and everyone, which is exactly what they did it for they want you pissed , want you to say oh hell no not getting stuck at this long light too , and they try and beat it , but they cut the yellow light time to next to nothing and this accident is the resolt , they need to put the light back to the way they were the way they were designed to be and thats to let traffic flow in one direction for a few minutes then let it flow north and south for a few , put the yellow lights back to where you can safely get through intersection, this is definitely not designed for safety