Thursday, August 11th, 2011

Car jumps Coldwater Creek; driver injured

By Margie Wuebker
Photo by Mark Pummell/The Daily Standard

A demolished car remains partially hidden in a wooded area off Coldwater Creek Road today in the wake of a Wednesday night accident that injured a 16-year-old Celina boy.

A 16-year-old Celina boy is undergoing treatment at a Dayton hospital following a Wednesday night accident that touched off a search of Coldwater Creek for a possible passenger.
Jakob Michael Wenning, 5460 St. Anthony Road, was traveling eastbound on St. Anthony Road at a high rate of speed when he reportedly drove through the stop sign at Coldwater Creek Road just after 11 p.m., according to a Mercer County Sheriff's report.
His 1990 Buick veered off the pavement, struck and traveled over a guardrail, smashed into another road sign and proceeded into a wooded area along the northwest creek bank. The car then traveled across the creek and came to rest in a wooded area along the southeast bank.
Wenning apparently crossed the creek and walked back to the road, where a passing motorist spotted him covered in blood. The woman stopped, and he could offer no explanation as to what had happened other than to say he awakened on the creek bank.
Wenning apparently suffered a seizure at that point and was unable to tell first responders whether he had a passenger.
The Celina Fire Department dive team assisted at the scene by searching the 4- to 5-foot deep creek and checking the demolished car and wooded area. Authorities subsequently learned from a family member that Wenning likely had no one with him.
The youth was transported by ambulance to Mercer County Community Hospital in Coldwater. Following treatment in the emergency room, he was transferred by ambulance to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton. A spokeswoman said Wenning continues to undergo evaluation and no condition has been assigned to his case as yet.
Deputies determined that Wenning was traveling at least 75 miles per hour at the time of the accident. He will be cited for reckless operation, according to the accident report.
In addition to sheriff's deputies and dive team members, responders included Coldwater Police and ambulances from the Celina and Coldwater fire departments.
The vehicle remained at the accident site with removal efforts to commence later today.
Additional online story on this date
ST. MARYS - Gerry Skiver of Portsmouth is the interim superintendent for the upcoming school year.
School board members unanimously approved hiring Skiver at Wednesday's regular school board meeting. He starts Monday. [More]
Subscriber and paid stories on this date
November General Election
Candidates are needed for elected positions in four Mercer County communities.
Five council seats and one public affairs board position remained without contenders for the Nov. 7 general election following Wednesday's filing deadline.
November General Election
Competition for open school board seats in St. Marys and New Bremen will be stiff in November's general election.
Seven candidates have filed peti
WAPAKONETA - A state official objected to a local official's report that the Miami & Erie Canal is to blame for flooding problems in St. Marys and New Bremen.
Money collected to be used for maintenance
CELINA - City officials are creating a user fee and maintenance fund for teams using Montgomery Field.
The Eastview Park field maintenance has been
Celina Police have filed drug-related charges in connection with two separate events taking place early Wednesday morning.
Aaron Rodriguez, 23, 211
WAPAKONETA - For the second time this week the local two-county drug task force arrested a Dayton man for allegedly selling drugs in the area.
At 3
A 28-year-old Celina man will spend up to six months at a community-based residential treatment center for his actions related to an apparent drug overdose.
CINCINNATI - After playing three hours of some of the most popular contemporary music of the 20th century, one thing is sure - Paul McCartney doesn't need visual gimmicks to entertain the masses.
For many of the area's baseball fans who wanted to keep up with the progress of Cory Luebke's Major League Baseball career, newspapers, television and computers were the only outlets unless they wanted to travel to see him play for the San Diego Padres.
Local Roundup
Compiled by Ryan Hines and Gary R. Rasberry
Minster and Wapakoneta were tied at 345 after Wednesday's tournament, but an 89 by the Wildcats' fifth-golfer Xavier Francis in the tiebreak allowed Minster to grab county bragging rights during the Auglaize County Open at Wapakoneta Country Club.