Winchester Students Offered Grief Support After Accident Claims the Life of 6th Grader

By Jeremy Coumbes on July 15, 2021 at 11:22am

The Winchester community is mourning the loss of a grade school student following a single-vehicle accident. Scott County Sheriff’s Deputies and Winchester EMS responded to a call of an accident involving a four-wheeler in rural Scott County at 6:53 Tuesday evening.

Scott County Sheriff Thomas Eddinger says an 11-year-old boy was traveling home from a neighbors house when the accident occurred on his family’s property, causing the ATV to overturn and land on top of him.

Eddinger says the boy was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. He was transported from the scene to Passavant Area Hospital and later to a hospital in Springfield where he was later pronounced dead by the Sangamon County Coroner.

According to an announcement Wednesday night on the Winchester Schools Facebook page, Superintendent Kevin Blankenship says district administration is committed to doing everything they can to help Winchester students with the grieving and healing process.

Blankenship says a crisis counseling team has been activated and will be at the Winchester Grade School starting at 12 noon Thursday. Students of Winchester Schools can go to the school for support and help in dealing with the loss. No appointment is needed.