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A current and former student of the same N.H. high school were killed in separate weekend crashes
“Supporting our students, staff, and families during this difficult time is our top priority right now.”
A New Hampshire high school is mourning after one current and one former student died in separate car crashes over the weekend.
“The loss of a friend or classmate can be deeply traumatic, and we recognize that students may return to school on Monday carrying a range of emotions, questions, and concerns,” Principal Heather McKillop said in a statement.
According to a statement from the school district released on Sunday, student support counselors and social workers would be available on Monday at the ConVal Regional High School campus in Peterborough.
Counselors from the Disaster Behavioral Health Response Team, directed by the state Department of Health and Human Services, will further support the district, and therapy dogs from Cold Springs Healing Paws in New Ipswich will provide additional comfort and support.
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“Supporting our students, staff, and families during this difficult time is our top priority right now,” interim Superintendent Ann Forrest said in a statement. “We have planned support for Monday, and we are also planning for support across the week.”
Friday crash in Dublin
The high school confirmed that the current student, a 17-year-old from Antrim, was killed during a crash on Friday in Dublin.
On Friday, at 12:30 p.m., Dublin police responded to a single-car crash on Perry Pasture Road. The Dublin Police Department reported that the car smashed into a tree and was off the road, with people trapped inside.
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When officers arrived, the 16-year-old teenager who called in the crash, a Peterborough resident, was outside the vehicle. Two other teens were in the car. The operator, a 17-year-old from Antrim (later identified as a student at ConVal Regional High School), died at the scene. First responders extricated an injured 16-year-old from Antrim. They then took both passengers by ambulance to the hospital.
While speed appears to be a contributing factor, police say the crash remains under investigation.
Saturday crash in New Ipswich
A former student at CoVal Regional High School died in a separate crash on Saturday in New Ipswich.
Family members in a WMUR report confirmed James Barna, 18, of Sharon, was a former CoVal Regional High School student.
Barna was one of two people who died in the New Ipswich crash early Saturday morning, according to New Hampshire State Police.
At 12:05 a.m., state troopers responded to a two-vehicle crash at the intersection of Turnpike Road and Temple Road. A preliminary investigation shows that a 1996 Honda Del Sol, driven by Devin Lundgren, 21, of New Ipswich, was traveling north on Turnpike Road when it collided with a 2015 Dodge Ram, traveling south and making a left turn.
Lundgren and the passenger in the Honda, Barna, died at the scene of the crash. The driver of the Dodge Ram, Samuel Wheeler, 36, of Greenville, suffered serious injuries and was taken by medical helicopter to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester.
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State Police say speed appears to be a factor in the crash, but it remains under investigation.
Heather Acorn, Barna’s legal guardian, told WMUR that he had a way of brightening up the room.
“Even when you were in the worst mood, he would just say something so stupid to make you laugh,” Acorn said.
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