Auburn, NY : Candlelight vigil held for Moravia student in critical condition after vehicle crash on Wednesday, December 28th 2016

A candlelight vigil was held Wednesday night for a 17-year-old Sempronius teen who was seriously injured in a motor vehicle crash with a tractor trailer.

Community members showed support for Dustin Mondics after he was severely injured when his car and a tractor trailer collided at around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday on Long Hill Road in Moravia. The vigil was held on the front lawn of Moravia High School.

Mondics, a senior at Moravia, was airlifted to Upstate University Hospital with very serious injuries. Moravia firefighters worked for around 30 minutes to free Mondics from his vehicle using extrication tools. Emergency responders said he was the only occupant of his vehicle.

The Sempronius teen was in critical condition as of around 3 p.m. Wednesday, according to a hospital spokesperson. State police said the driver of the tractor trailer, 64-year-old Homer man Kenneth E. Nelson, was taken to Auburn Community Hospital via ambulance with injuries that were not life-threatening.

Troopers said Mondics was heading east on Long Hill Road when his vehicle entered the westbound lane into the path of Nelson's tractor trailer. According to state police investigators, Nelson attempted to avoid the car, but the two collided; Mondics' car came to a rest on the south side of the road while Nelson's truck stopped in a ditch on the road's north side.

Troopers said slippery pavement may have factored into the crash. There had been no tickets filed as of Wednesday.

Mondics plays on the high school's varsity football and basketball teams. As part of the vigil in his honor, community members offered prayers and illuminated his No. 40 on the lawn using electronic candles, said Moravia woman Teresa Haslauer.

Haslauer — whose son, junior Thomas Reeves, played football with Mondics this year and basketball in previous years — said the vigil is a collective effort by many in the community to show their support.

"I think that all of us out here felt that we needed a place to channel energy," she said. "The kids are on break scared and worried about their friend. We wanted a safe place for them to come together."

Todd Mulvaney, Moravia's varsity basketball coach, said Mondics is a captain of the team. He described Mondics as one of the hardest workers he has ever met as coach, saying that the senior has a great personality that shows in how people have responded to the accident.

Source :
Candlelight vigil held for Moravia student in critical condition after vehicle crash