Family outing ends in deadly highway collision
The father was killed, and the mother and an 11-year-old son were seriously injured. Also killed was the driver of the vehicle that collided with them, the State Patrol said. The family's 4-year-old daughter was the only one who escaped unscathed from the horrific crash.
 The Kelly family is shown. Corianne, 4, at left, stands in front of an older daughter who was not with the family at the time of the accident. At right are William, 11; Michael, 50; and Rosemarie, 45. |
Troopers and emergency personnel were called to the scene of the crash, on Highway 3 south of the Hood Canal Bridge, at about 11:30 p.m.
The State Patrol said Kelly was driving the family's green Jeep Cherokee south on the two-lane highway. He was chatting with his wife and listening to the radio as he drove, his wife later said.
Suddenly the sound of the radio was drowned out by a crushing impact. For unknown reasons, a white Jeep Grand Cherokee, driven by Schmidt, swerved across the centerline as it headed north and slammed head-on into the Kellys' vehicle.
Kelly and Schmidt were both pronounced dead at the scene, near the intersection with Pioneer Hill Road. Officials said Michael Kelly wasn't wearing a seat belt.
The mother was taken to Harrison Hospital in Bremerton, said Jody Matson of the Poulsbo Fire Department, and the son was rushed to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for emergency surgery.
By the next day, the mother, Rosemarie, 45, was in serious condition with a spinal injury and six broken ribs.
The son, William, 11, is in critical condition with massive head injuries. The sixth-grader from Horizon Elementary School was in surgery for several hours at Harborview, and doctors are hopeful they can save his eyesight despite severe swelling.
As he left surgery, William was able to talk and said he "wants to hug the doctors."
Meanwhile, the crash remains under investigation as troopers try to figure out why Schmidt crossed the centerline of the highway.
Family members said Michael Kelly was a heating and air-conditioning specialist by trade, who was well-respected around his neighborhood and well-known for taking care of his parents, his friends and his neighbors.
"He would do anything. He always helped us out. ... It's just tearing me up now," said one of Kelly's neighbors, Dennis Corprue.
Michael Kelly's father, Pat, says the whole family had been planning a cruise in August, but "we're going to have to cancel that."