Eastern Shore of VA Mourns Zarissa Ayres, Regina Ayres and Other Family Members After Truck Crash

The close knit community on the Eastern Shore of Virginia has been in shock over the last two days after a horrific tractor trailer crash that claimed the lives of five family members and an unborn child.

Delmarvanow reported on how Leon Ayres of Accomac Road near Greenbush lost two daughters and two grandchildren. An unborn baby was also lost in the crash.

As an Eastern Shore of Virginia personal injury lawyer I have helped many families after tragedies in the area but have seen few accidents as heartbreaking as this one in more than two decades of working in personal injury.

Early on Saturday, Zarissa M. Ayres, 30, and Regina M. Ayres, 24, both of Greenbush; and Regina’s boyfriend, 25-year-old Travis M. Stratton of Onancock, died in an automobile crash in Wye Mills, Md.

Also killed were Regina’s 7-year-old daughter, and Regina and Stratton’s four-month-old son. The Delmarvanow report said Zarissa Ayres was pregnant and the family was heading to a baby shower in Baltimore when the crash occurred.

A tractor-trailer truck rolled over on the 2006 Suzuki Forenza in which they were traveling at the intersection of routes 50 and 213 at about 1:15 a.m. When tractor trailers hit smaller vehicles the odds are stacked against those inside the car. Sadly this was the case early Saturday.

The truck driver from Wilmington, Delaware, was airlifted to a Maryland shock-trauma unit. He was released later Saturday.

Members of the family who died were renown for their academic achievements. Delmarvanow reported on how “ the adults killed had been mentioned in the hometown newspaper during hallmark moments: Zarissa Ayres in 2006, when she earned an associate’s degree from Eastern Shore Community College.”

Her sister, Regina Ayres, was a “constant on the honor roll as a youth, her name listed repeatedly in the paper.”

Her boyfriend Stratton, finished second in the 800-meter run for Nandua High’s district championship track team in 2006.

There were lights at the intersection where the family died. Police said it was not known which vehicle had a green light at the intersection and no charges have yet been filed. There is no indication that alcohol was a factor.

Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers has helped the families of many people who have been killed in trucking cases to recover money in wrongful death cases. If you have lost a loved one, the last thing you want to think about is talking to a lawyer. However, the sad reality is deaths can be financially devastating and you are seldom prepared for the loss of a loved one. All cases are different and we cannot guarantee the same results in your case, but John Cooper of Cooper Hurley secured a $3.5 settlement for the child of a man who died in a fiery truck accident on I-64 in Norfolk.

If you have been injured or lost a loved one in a tractor trailer accident, call Cooper Hurley at 757.455.0077 or see CooperHurley.com. Cooper Hurley has a client meeting location on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.