Northway crash kills 2, injures 2

Shift518 Automotive
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very surprised this hasn’t been brought up yet

HALFMOON – Students at local school districts are coping with tragedy after two Shenendehowa students were killed in a car crash Saturday night.

Students are wearing green on Monday to honor 17-year-old Chris Stewart and Deanna Rivers. The Shen seniors died when their SUV was hit from behind, sending them careening off the Northway.

Two other passengers in the car, Matthew Hardy, a junior at Shen, and Bailey Wind, a senior at Shaker High School, were seriously injured in the crash and remained hospitalized at Albany Med. Students will wear blue in Wind’s honor on Tuesday.

State Police say Stewart was driving the group home from the ‘Albany Cup’ college basketball game between Siena and UAlbany when they were hit so hard from behind that their SUV flipped, rolled off the Northway, and came to rest in the median.

The driver who rear-ended the teens was 22 year-old Dennis Drue of Clifton Park. State Police say Drue tested positive for alcohol at the scene. Investigators say he was speeding, going at least 75, when he switched lanes and struck the teens SUV.

According to State Police, Drue has a driving record with past violations for speeding. He’s also had his license taken away several times between 2008 and 2011. Drue suffered only minor injuries in the crash.

Stewart was the captain of the Shenendehowa football team. Rivers was a member of the softball team. She was in the backseat with Hardy when the SUV flipped. Both were ejected from the vehicle.

Hardy was also a member of the Shen football team. He and Wind survived the crash but remain hospitalized as of Monday morning. Wind, a senior at Shaker, was in the passenger seat. Just last week, she signed her Letter of Intent to dive for division one Tennessee.

A candlelight vigil for Stewart and Rivers has been scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Tuesday night on the Shen football field. Citing safety concerns, school officials are urging students not to make a memorial on the crash site on the Northway.

Shenendehowa Central School District Superintendent, Dr. Oliver Robinson, says the two were strong willed, athletic, and ambitious.

“We’re a big school, but we’re a very tight knit community. The two students who unfortunately lost their lives were two wonderful students, two tremendous student athletes…their reach across the school was wide”

“The depth of this in how much this will have an effect on the community will be long lasting. These were very popular kids,” said Shen Athletic Director Chris Culnan. “These were very popular student athletes.”

“I knew him (Stewart) well,” said Shen football player James Stevenson. “He really brought the joy up in the football team. He was a fun guy, you know. Even when practice was down, he could make practice in to a really fun day… We’re all brothers. This is the loss of a family member. It’s traumatic. It’s not just going to affect me and my brothers, it’s going to affect this entire community.”

Drue will be arraigned in Halfmoon Town Court. After official toxicology reports are complete, it is expected he will be charged with second-degree Vehicular Manslaughter, possibly DWI, and speeding charges.

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My supervisor at work was one of the chief firemen on duty at the scene. He hunts, is a big dude, one tough cookie, and has seen alot of shit.

He came in, head hung low, and said he doesnt want to talk about it, and has images in his head he doesnt want to think about.

Not good.

Once again, another young moron who made a bad life choice and turned many lives upside down becasue he just had to do what he did behind the wheel. The kids in the SUV never saw it coming, and were minding their own business traveling as they should be, at the speed limit, in the correct lane.

My heart goes out to the victims, their friends and their families. The book better be thrown at this guy.

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just awfull rip

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All he has a.t.m is a vehicular manslaughter 2 !!! He will Prolly get a 1/2 yrs . Such a joke ,my kid brother knew all involved as he plays football etc with them . My other bro knows the asshole drue that hit them and partys with him frequently .

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John, let me just go out on a limb here. Given the 22yr old’s prior actions, this accident doesnt come as a suprise.

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No not at all

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Wow, that is sad as hell. Terrible thing’s happen to good people.

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then I dont feel too bad hoping he gets what the letter of the law says he should. which IMO isnt enough.

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RIP. Really sad story.

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RIP.

I guess he flew past my sister in law with my nieces in the car while texting on the northway shortly before it happened.

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I kept seeing this on my newsfeed on facebook, I was too lazy to read the story - I thought the kids in the Explorer might have been drunk…but damn. That sucks.

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Your sister in law should go to the court then hes brought up and comment on that. More people showing support for the people hurt by his mistake, and more people outraged at the actions should have some weight behind the consiquences he should face, and moreso hopefully turn this into such a big deal that people read/see it and think twice befor their actions. Same for the fellow students and friends. Laws dont stop stupid, it only deals out a consiquence. You gotta get in peoples heads BEFORE they make a dumb decission.

My guy at work has been on the phone all day working with his men that were on scene too. Alot of people impacted by this. Very overwhelming it seems.

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Really sad.

I’m sure I’ll get grief for this post from you people who love your damn bottles…but come on…

Why do people continue to drink? There is no number that can be put on how many lives alcohol has ruined with death, injury, and emotional stress. It has torn families apart for decades, maybe centuries. When will people get it (including maybe some members here who get so drunk they can’t even remember anything)? The hell is wrong with people?

I was at that game supporting UAlbany and didn’t drink and had an ABSOLUTE BLAST. You do NOT need to consume alcohol to have a good time. If you do, well, you just suck to begin with. IMO.

The saddest thing is, in almost all such accidents, the drunk POS lives. Due to this kids record, I hope he gets as much jail time as possible…hopefully life. They should charge him with two counts of vehicular man slaughter and 2 counts of anything else they can pin on him for the two survivors.

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to answer your initial question, and this will also be the answer to everything else under the sun when people question why do people do what they do.

Because they can.

Someone could drink rocket fuel and be high as a kite for all I care. Dont fuck up my life over it and I wont care what they do. Because they can, is why people take risks and screw up. No laws, no massive board of people, no news articles, no awareness groups, NOTHING will ever keep people from doing something because they can.

The only thing that WILL 100%, without a doubt stop something from happening like this is if THAT PERSON DECIDES NOT TO DO IT. The laws, commercials full of statistics, your parents and friends opinions… will only HELP someone decide for themselves.

I said it before and ill say it again, till the day I die. Accountability and responsibility should be the highest “ility” on everyone’s list of things to live by. There is no reason people can’t “do what they want to” and NOT impact other people, even if those actions are dangerous, threating, or unsafe. They made the decision to take action, no matter what it is, then they should also take on the accountability and responsibility for the consequences. IF THEY DON’T WANT TO BE RESPONSABLE AND ACCOUNTABLE WHEN SHIT HITS THE FAN, then that should be what stops them from taking said action.

/life lesson rant from KK

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I don’t want this to get off topic but…It is not so much that people continue to drink, it is that there is still a small percentage that drink irresponsibly. Just as peoples attitudes towards smoking has changed over the years (I remember smoke filled bars). I think peoples attitudes towards drinking, particularly drinking and driving, has changed for the better as well. It hasn’t been proven yet that he was drinking, and if what GD3 Skier says is true. It just shows that being preoccupied while driving is just as dangerous. And should be held just as accountable.

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Well I hope people are paying attention cause this crap needs to stop. For everyone’s sake.

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I.m.o , drinking is more dangerous than weed ! No I don’t smoke pot my god have some balance lol . Why let alcohol be legal when it destroys far more than weed ever has or will .

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says the guy that texts while driving…

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so?

if you dont make any mistakes doing so how is that wrong?

Other than a law telling us that it is?

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Wife just told me about this and asked if I had read about it on shift and said no, until just now. Such a shame. This disgusts me to no end, where the lives of the seemingly innocent are snuffed out because of stupid drinking and driving. :Idiots

On the flip side reading how they were both ejected from the SUV…not wearing seat belts while in the rear. Couldda, wouldda, shouldda…IMO the likelyhood of their survival would have gone through the roof had they been wearing them.

RIP…