Quick thinking on the part of a Head Start teacher saved the lives of children and possibly lessened the severity of injuries some received, parents said.
"I feel that Juana, the teacher, saved those babies lives today," Stevie Cotton, mother of an injured child, said.
"If she wouldn't have taken action quickly like she did, the situation could have been so much worse."
Cotton said that as far as she knew, the teacher pushed the stroller as far off the road as she could when she saw the vehicle headed towards her and the children. The stroller reportedly tumbled over in the grassy ditch.
Adalie, Cotton's 2-year-old daughter, received bruises to her face and a broken tibia.
Emergency personnel from both the Pea Ridge and Northeast Benton County Volunteer Fire Department ambulances assisted at the scene.
According to Pea Ridge Police, about 10:20 a.m. Wednesday, July 11, a dark colored Dodge Dakota was being driven up Hallack Lane when it struck a teacher pushing children in a stroller.
Pea Ridge Police Officer said the driver, whom police are declining to name until the report is complete, said he fell asleep at the wheel. Police did perform field sobriety testing on the man who voluntarily provided a urine sample. Police were seeking a search warrant to obtain a blood sample, Lisenbee said, adding that the bodily fluid samples will be sent to the Arkansas State Crime Lab for evaluation.
General News on 07/18/2018