By By Sheila Blackmon/The Meridian Star
March 12, 2001
An accident involving a car and a motorcycle Sunday morning claimed the life of an 9-year-old Alabama girl.
Lauderdale County Sheriff Billy Sollie said the accident occurred at 10:45 a.m. on Campground Road, about a mile west of Ethel Clayton Road.
Lauderdale County Coroner Marl Cobler said he pronounced Kaitlyn Heist of Needham, Ala., dead at Riley Hospital shortly after noon. He said she died shortly after the accident of massive chest, abdominal and head trauma.
Sollie said the accident is still under investigation. The advanced accident reconstruction team was called out, and Sollie said he cannot release details of the accident until the team's investigation is complete.
He said the vehicles involved were a 1987 Yamaha motorcycle driven by Leland Coleman of 11136 Suqualena Road and a 1989 Mitsubishi car driven by Gladys Null of 9298 Null Road.
Kaitlyn was a passenger on the motorcycle. Sollie said the two vehicles collided. Cobler said Heist was thrown from the motorcycle.
He said the girl was wearing a helmet and Coleman is a friend of her family. Both were transported to Riley Hospital by Metro ambulance, he said. Null was not injured.
Sheila Blackmon is a staff writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail her at sblackmon@themeridianstar.com.