1 dead in truck collision

Six people are hospitalized. A woman and her two kids are taken to surgery.

By HELEN ANNE TRAVIS, Times Staff Writer
Published November 24, 2007

District 5 Medical Examiner Mickey Moran, center, examines the scene of an accident involving a head-on collision between two trucks. There were six people with traumatic injuries who were transported to area hospitals.
	[Keri Wiginton | Times]

RIDGE MANOR - The teenagers waited as close as authorities would allow. Down the road, just south of the Sumter County line, the mangled remains of their buddy's red Chevrolet Silverado rested in a ditch.

Donald Betsch, 33, of Bushnell was supposed to meet the teens Friday for a day of mudbogging in Zephyrhills.

But about 9:30 a.m., his pickup struck another vehicle head-on near U.S. 301 and Kramer Street.

Betsch was heading south on U.S. 301 when he tried to pass a semitrailer truck. His Silverado collided with a northbound white Ford F250 truck, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

The accident killed Betsch's 28-year-old brother, Lloyd. Donald Betsch and a 16-year-old cousin also in the truck were taken to Tampa General Hospital.

None of the men were wearing seat belts, according to the FHP.

Both vehicles ended up in a sandy ditch near a sign for a horse ranch. Their hoods were only feet apart. Information about the semitrailer truck was not available.

The driver of the Ford F250, Kenneth Jeffries, 39, lives in Maryland, but he and his family had driven down to Zephyrhills to spend Thanksgiving with his mother. They were heading home when the accident occurred.

Jeffries, his wife, Wendy, 38, and their two children were taken to St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa. Late Friday afternoon, Jeffries said his wife and children, ages 7 and 12, were still in surgery.

The teenagers at the accident site had waited for their buddies for almost an hour at a friend's home in Bushnell. They grew tired of waiting and headed south on U.S. 301 toward the mudbogging site.

"And then we saw Don's truck," said Chad Murphy, 19.

It was dreary and cold Friday morning. The teens huddled in their sweat shirts as they fielded calls from the Betsch brothers' parents. The teens held Betsch's relatives as they sobbed on the side of the road.

Traffic on U.S. 301 was disrupted for several hours Friday morning as medical personnel, the Highway Patrol and the Hernando County Sheriff's Office worked at the scene.

Cars, motorcycles and RVs were redirected through a small neighborhood of mobile homes, wooden porches and dirt roads.

The accident remained under investigation Friday evening. The FHP asked anyone who might have witnessed the crash to call toll-free 1-800-500-1240.

Helen Anne Travis can be reached at 352 521-6518 or htravis@sptimes.com.

[Last modified November 23, 2007, 20:12:17]