The crash happened around 5 p.m. Friday. Waits was traveling west on Ohio 129 when he reportedly lost control of his Chevrolet Cavalier and crossed the median into eastbound traffic, said Butler County Sheriff’s deputy Sgt. Mike Nutt. Waits struck head-on the Chevrolet Suburban driven by Pilot.
Waits was ejected through the rear window of the Cavalier, Nutt said. Waits was not wearing a seat belt.
Pilot suffered “serious visible injuries” and remains in serious condition today, Oct. 24, after being flown to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton from Atrium Medical Center in Middletown. Passenger Roger Warwick, also of Blanchester, suffered “moderate” injuries and has been released from the hospital.
After being hit by Waits, Pilot’s Suburban went airborne, landing on the roof of a Toyota Sienna van, Nutt said. The two females occupants of the Sienna, Dorothy Edgerton and daughter Chloe, were not injured.
The front end of Wait’s Cavalier was destroyed, with its engine and front-end axle landing approximately 20 to 30 feet away from the vehicle.
The accident caused Ohio 129 to be shut down in both directions for more than four hours.
The accident remains under investigation. Deputies interviewed one witness, but could not determine the cause of the crash, Nutt said.
“We don’t really know the cause. I don’t want to even speculate on what the reason was, it could’ve been a lot of things,” Nutt said.
Staff writers Kareem Elgazzar and Hannah Poturalski contributed to this report.