Madisonville, KY : 2 toddlers die in parkway crash on Sunday, 25th March 2018

Two toddlers were the victims of a fatal car crash Sunday afternoon on the Blue Grass Parkway.

According to Kentucky State Police Post 4 spokesman Jeff Gregory, the crash occurred at 3 p.m. Sunday when a Nissan Quest minivan, driven by Michael Smith, 36, of Lebanon, traveling westbound near the 5-mile marker on the parkway blew a tire, went into the median and overturned.

The van slid into oncoming traffic in the eastbound passing lane when a Buick Enclave, driven by Chris Reed, 51, of Elizabethtown, struck it.

Gregory said the children - a 3-year-old boy and a 4-year-old girl - who were passengers in the van, were pronounced dead at the scene.

Also in the van were the children's mother, Crystal Shipp, 27, of Gravel Switch and a 2-year-old and 1-year-old.

Smith and the 2-year-old were transported by Hardin County EMS to Hardin Memorial Hospital in Elizabethtown and Shipp and the 1-year-old were airlifted to Louisville hospitals - Shipp to University Hospital and the infant to Norton's Children's Hospital.

Gregory said the family all are listed in stable condition with non-life threatening injuries.

Gregory called the crash a "heartbreaker."

The Enclave also had two passengers, Linda Reed, 46, and the Reeds' teenage daughter. Gregory said the family reported no injuries.

The parkway was shut down for several hours as state police investigators reconstructed the scene. It reopened around 8 p.m.

Hardin County EMS, the Hardin County Coroner's office and Central Hardin Fire Department also responded to the scene.

Source :
2 toddlers die in parkway crash