A Saturday night crash has left a man and a child dead, state police say.
The crash happened just before 10 p.m. on La. 367 near La. 1106, troopers say.
Stacy Lemoine Stevens, 49, of Eunice and George Ardoin, 4, of Mamou, died in the crash.
The initial investigation revealed Stevens was driving south on La 367 when he lost control of the vehicle and veered into the northbound lane. His car crashed into an SUV with two adults and two children in it, troopers say. All four people in the SUV were transported to a hospital with serious injuries; Ardoin was one of the children and he was pronounced dead at the hospital, troopers say.
Stevens was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.
Seatbelt and restraint use on his part, and on the part of the children, isn't known. Neither of the adults in the SUV were restrained, troopers say.
Standard toxicology samples were obtained from both drivers and results are pending. This crash remains under investigation.
"While not all crashes are survivable, statistics show that the chances of surviving a crash rise significantly when properly restrained. Proper use of age-appropriate child seats will also increase chances of survival. Making good choices while in motor vehicles such as always ensuring every occupant is properly restrained and not driving impaired or distracted can often mean the difference between life and death," Troopers say.
Troop I has investigated 46 fatal crashes resulting in 56 deaths in 2021.
