4 young men killed in head-on collision

CHESTER, Md. – The Queen Anne’s County sheriff’s office says four young men have been killed in a two-car near Chester Wednesday.

The four have been identified as 19-year-old Tyler Elzey of Chester, 18-year-old Harrison Rhodes Smith of Chester, 18-year-old Cory Pessagno of Chester and 19- year-old Michael John Ringenbach of Stevensville, the sheriff’s office tells The Star Democrat

Spokesman Dale Patrick said the accident occurred about 4 p.m. Wednesday on Cox Neck Road near Jones Road.

The four — all graduates of Kent Island High School — were in a Volkswagen that crashed head-on into a Ford Focus, driven by 73-year-old Eli Dabich Jr.

The young men, who had to be cut out of the car, were pronounced dead on the scene.

Dabich was taken by helicopter to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. He is in serious condition.

Patrick says speed appears to have been a factor in the head-on collision, but the crash remains under investigation.

Elzey, one of the victims, was a volunteer firefighter.

WTOP’S Joan Jones contributed to this report.

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