Short Pump Town Center Crash Victim Identified

Henrico Police have released the identity of the woman killed in a four vehicle accident that occurred at the main entrance of Short Pump Town Center just before noon on Friday. 62-year-old Diane Wheat died after her Honda Civic was T-boned by a GMC Yukon. Wheat, a New kent County resident, was a receptionist at […]

July 26, 2009; 12:48 PM • by Trevor Dickerson

Henrico Police have released the identity of the woman killed in a four vehicle accident that occurred at the main entrance of Short Pump Town Center just before noon on Friday. 62-year-old Diane Wheat died after her Honda Civic was T-boned by a GMC Yukon.

Wheat, a New kent County resident, was a receptionist at the nearby CarMax headquarters in the Westcreek office park. She had worked there since 1999.

Police are still investigating whether the crash was caused when the driver of the Yukon SUV had an unidentified medical emergency, which lead to loss of control of the vehicle. Witnesses say the SUV crossed the median while traveling west down West Broad Street and hit two cars waiting to exit the mall at Lauderdale and Broad before T-boning Wheat’s sedan.

The driver of the Yukon and his 12-year-old daughter were treated for minor injuries. There’s no word on the condition of at least two other people in vehicles hit by the SUV, or what, if any, charges will be filed.

West Broad Street was down to one westbound lane until just before 3:00 p.m. Friday to give adequate space for emergency vehicles and investigators.

If the accident was indeed the result of a medical condition, it will be the second such incident in as many weeks.

On July 16, a man lost control of his vehicle coming out of the Bank of America at the Shoppes at Westgate across the street from Friday’s accident, allegedly while suffering a seizure. The vehicle plowed into several cars, a tree and power transformer (subsequently knocking out power to the shopping center for most of the day). Witnesses say the car would have likely driven through Panera Bread if it weren’t for a parked car just outside the entrance.

July 26, 2009 12:48 PM 0