By James B. Bartle
The town of Sullivan is in mourning following a horrific accident that claimed the life of a beloved local teen Thursday on eastbound Interstate 44 at the 250.6 mile marker.
Daniel Schatz, 19, son of Missouri House 111th District Republican nominee, Dave Schatz, and wife, Chara, was one of two teens fatally injured in a accident involving two St. James school buses, Schatz’s truck and a tractor-trailer.
The Missouri Highway Patrol released the following report to the Independent News:
“On August 5, at approximately 10:11 a.m., four vehicles were involved in a traffic crash on eastbound Interstate 44 near the 250.6 mile marker where two subjects were killed and 55 others were injured.
According to the investigation, the traffic crash occurred as a 2007 Volvo conventional tractor, operating without a trailer, was traveling east on Interstate 44 in the right lane of the two-lane roadway. The driver, identified as Michael D. Crabtree, 43, of Kearneysville, WV, stopped in traffic due to a backup from a construction zone a mile east of his location. A second vehicle, a 2007 GMC Sierra pickup truck, was traveling eastbound behind the tractor when the driver, Daniel A. Schatz, 19, failed to notice the stopped Volvo tractor. Impact first occurred as the front of the pickup struck the rear of the tractor, and then came to rest. At the same time, a 2003 Blue Bird school bus from the St. James School District, driven by Katherine P. Shackelford, 75, St. James, was approaching the two stopped vehicles. The second impact of this traffic crash occurred as the front of the bus made contact with the rear of the GMC pickup, pushing it on top of the Volvo tractor. At the same time, a second school bus, also from the St. James School District, a 2001 Blue Bird driven by Kelly M. Mcennis-Mullenix, 38, St. James, impacted the rear of the first school bus. This impact caused the first bus to travel up and on top of the two other vehicles. All the vehicles then came to a rest on the roadway.
During the incident, the two school buses were occupied by students from John F. Hodge High School, St. James School District, and were being transported to Six Flags, Eureka. The first bus was occupied by 25 female students and chaperones. The second bus was occupied by 30 male students and chaperones.
After the traffic crash, the driver of the Volvo tractor, the two bus drivers, and 54 students were transported to local hospitals for treatment of injuries ranging from minor to moderate. The driver of the GMC truck, Daniel Schatz, was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:15 p.m. and a female student from the first bus, Jessica R. Brinker, 15, St. James, was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:38 p.m. by Franklin County Medical Examiner Assistant Mike Copeland.
The two school buses were owned and operated by Copeland Bus Services, LLC of St. James.”
The National Transportation and Safety Board was called to the accident scene and began their investigation early Friday morning. The NTSB is looking into several aspects of the accident and searching through information to determine what can be done in the future in construction zone areas to prevent these types of accidents as well as review vehicle safety factors. Their report is expected to take several weeks.
A candlelight vigil in memory of Daniel Schatz was held at the Sullivan High School football field on Friday evening with more than 800 people in attendance. The program featured a video presentation of Schatz’s life along with candles lit in the stands and surrounding the SHS stadium. The numbers 7 and 22 graced the hill of the football field in honor of Schatz’s football numbers while at SHS and the University of Missouri.
Schatz was a standout in football, basketball and baseball at SHS and excelled not only in his athletics but in the classroom and as an individual. He helped lead the SHS football team to the State of Missouri Football Class 3A semifinals in 2008.
Funeral services were scheduled for Mon., Aug. 9 and were under the direction of the Eaton Funeral Home, Sullivan.