Investigators looking for witnesses to fatal crash
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office has received multiple calls about a crash on Lee Boulevard, just west of the intersection of Harry Avenue North in Lehigh Acres at 2:28 p.m.
Four people were ejected from a Ford Explorer after it had rolled over after leaving the street. A fifth person was still in the vehicle. Emergency responders immediateTraffic Homicide detectives ly began to aid the injured, however, the driver of the SUV was, subsequently, pronounced dead at the scene, said a spokesman with the Sheriff’s Office.
He was identified as Raymond Jennings, 67, of 3317 15th Street West, Lehigh Acres. One of the passengers was critically injured and airlifted to the Trauma Center at Lee Memorial Hospital. The other three were taken by ambulance. The passengers were children, ages 7, 9, 15 and 15. Two have been treated and released while two remain hospitalized, one in critical condition. All passengers are from Lehigh Acres.
Preliminary findings by investigators indicate the driver lost control of the vehicle after moving from the center, westbound, lane he was traveling, possibly to avoid another vehicle entering his lane. The vehicle went over a curb and began to roll when encountering an incline at the west end of a residential yard. The vehicle flipped multiple times before coming to rest in a vacant lot, authorities said. No one was wearing a seat-belt, officials said.
Anyone who may have witnessed the crash and not spoken with investigators is asked to contact the Lee County Sheriff’s Office at (239) 477-1000. The investigation continues. This is the 21st fatality in Lee County in 2009.