UPDATE: Crews extricate woman after Caledonia crash

By Paul Sloth
Journal Times

Monday, October 6, 2008 2:02 PM CDT

CALEDONIA — The family of Michaelle Patmore watched nervously as Caledonia rescue crews worked hard to pry the 28-year-old Caledonia woman from her Jeep Grand Cherokee on Saturday afternoon.

Pieces of Patmore’s vehicle were scattered all around the scene of the head-on collision she was involved in shortly after noon Saturday. She had to be extricated from her vehicle after the accident in the 3600 block of 4 Mile Road.

Patmore suffered serious injuries when she was hit head on by the driver of a pickup truck who had reportedly passed out, according to rescue personnel at the scene.

The force of the collision pinned Patmore in her vehicle. It took roughly an hour for crews to pry Patmore out from the drivers’ side of the overturned vehicle.

Caledonia rescue personnel extricate a woman from her vehicle Saturday after a two-car collision on 4 Mile Road about a quarter mile west of its intersection with Memco Lane. Buy this photo at http://www.jtreprints.com Scott Anderson Journal Times

Patmore was taken by Flight for Life to Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital in Wauwatosa. As of Saturday night, her condition was unknown. Rescue personnel at the scene of the crash said Patmore suffered from two femur fractures, a broken leg and a broken left forearm.

Mark Kechter, 54, of Caledonia, was driving eastbound on 4 Mile Road when he reportedly passed out, according to police and witnesses at the scene. He hit another vehicle, driven by 43-year-old Margaret Anderson of Caledonia, before colliding with Patmore, who was driving westbound.

Family members said Patmore was returning from a shopping trip with her 4-year-old son, Aidan.

Carey Tempesta of Racine, who was the first to arrive on the scene, pulled Patmore’s son out of the vehicle.

Tempesta, whose brother, Anthony, is a Caledonia police officer, said that it did not appear that the boy suffered any serious injuries, but he was shaken up by the accident. Tempesta happened upon the accident shortly after it happened.

“I don’t know what came over me, but I just jumped on top of the truck and started pulling the kid out,” said Tempesta, who works at TwinDisc in Racine. “He was hanging by his seat belt. The kid was frantic.”

Tempesta waited at the scene until he saw rescue crews get Patmore out of her vehicle.

Other witnesses at the scene comforted Patmore’s son until rescue crews arrived. He told rescue workers he wanted to wait for his mom before leaving for the hospital.

The crash happened not far from Patmore’s home in Caledonia. Both Patmore and her son were wearing seat belts, witnesses said.

Sheila Bielefeldt heard the crash from her home not far from the scene of the accident. She was standing outside talking on her cell phone to her sister when it happened.

“All of the sudden … BAM. It was loud. I said, ‘I have to go, I have to call 911,’ ” said Bielefeldt, who works in the health care profession. Knowing CPR, Bielefeldt decided to run to the scene to see if she could help.

At the scene she said she found Kechter, who was driving a pickup truck, lying on the ground outside his vehicle complaining of chest pains. He had told witnesses that he blacked out.

Police at the scene said they did not smell any alcohol when they talked with Kechter before he was taken to the hospital.

Rescue crews took Kechter, Anderson and Patmore’s son to Wheaton Franciscan-All Saints hospital, 3801 Spring St.

The investigation is ongoing.

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