A 10-year-old Ohio boy injured in a weekend accident on the turnpike in New Stanton that killed his sister has been released from Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.
Gerardo Samonte, of Elsetta Avenue, Cleveland, was treated at the hospital and released, according to a hospital spokesman.
He was injured at 2:09 a.m. Saturday, and his sister, Mary Samonte, 14, was killed when their father, Gerardo S. Samonte, apparently fell asleep at the wheel of their 1998 Ford Expedition, according to state police.
Police said the vehicle drifted into the grass and struck a guide rail, then rolled over before coming to rest, partially blocking the right lane, a short distance east of the New Stanton interchange.
Neither child was wearing a seat belt, and both were ejected from the vehicle, police said. Mary was pronounced dead at Frick Hospital, Mt. Pleasant, and Gerardo was flown by helicopter to Children's Hospital. Their father and their mother, Marilyn Samonte, were taken to Westmoreland Regional Hospital, Greensburg, for treatment of minor injuries.
Police said the road was blocked for about an hour. The investigation into the incident is continuing, according to police.
