Mother and Infant Killed in Accident Near Filer Resonates Years Later

When you're a first responder, you would love to forget some of the many accidents in our area. Unfortunately, the lives lost remain in your memory. This is especially true of an accident many years ago that involved a mother and infant killed near Filer. Sergeant Ken Mencl from the Twin Falls County Sheriff's Office recalls what happened that sad day.

Sergeant Mencl: "Several years ago, it was around the time of the Twin Falls County Fair, we had a vehicle collision on Highway 30 and Wildcat Way near Filer, where a young woman pulled into traffic from a stop sign. For one reason or another, when she pulled out she was hit immediately by a patrol car, a Filer patrol car traveling eastbound on Highway 30.

The impact from that collision killed the driver immediately. Sergeant Dan Tom and I were among the first responders to arrive at the crash, and upon arrival at the crash I was checking the status of those that were in the cars to see how things were going.

The officer that was driving the patrol car was obviously in shock and was trying to process what had just happened. We ascertained that he was well enough that he did not need immediate attention. My attention was quickly drawn to the driver that had pulled out from the stop sign. It was apparent rather quickly that she had succumbed to her injuries. While I was checking on her and checking for a pulse, I observed there was a small child in a car seat in the back seat.

It was about that time that Sergeant Tom arrived at the crash and we quickly and gently pulled this infant from the car seat out onto the road surface and started doing CPR for what seemed like an eternity.

St. Luke's Magic Valley paramedics showed up rather quickly and took over CPR. This infant was life flighted to Boise.

It was a short time after that we received a card in the mail from the survivors of this family thanking us for the life-saving measures that we performed on the child which allowed them enough time to go to the hospital to say their goodbyes before they pulled her off of life support.

It's for this reason that we try to do all that we can to provide reminders to the community that drive means drive and to pay attention to what you're doing because it can cost your life or that of somebody else around you."