POINCIANA, Fla. – Crews on Thursday installed additional stop signs at an Osceola County intersection where a woman and her three grandchildren were killed in a crash less than two weeks ago.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the woman and children, ages 1, 9 and 11, were killed when a 15-year-old driver ran a stop sign at San Miguel Road and Laurel Avenue and collided with the family’s car.
The new stop signs make the intersection a four-way stop, with officials and neighbors hoping the measure will reduce wrecks and reckless driving in the area.
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***GETTING RESULTS***
— Cat Silver (@CatSilverNews6) September 14, 2023
The intersection of San Miguel & Laurel is now a four-way stop in #Poinciana. Osceola County installed new signs this morning following a deadly crash Labor Day weekend.
We’ll see you on @news6wkmg starting at 4pm. pic.twitter.com/fefuGKoWCZ
In a statement released last week, Osceola County said it would be taking “immediate steps to expedite safety measures in anticipation of installing a four-way stop at the intersection.”
Sheriff Marcos Lopez spoke to News 6 about the measures his office has taken to educate young drivers in Osceola County. His department also installed signs at the intersection where the crash happened Friday to remind drivers to slow down.
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“We have actually conducted over 31,000 traffic stops,” Lopez said. “We really focus on aggressive drivers throughout the county. We’re going to continue. We’ve done a lot of zero tolerances in that area.”
Rep. Darren Soto, D-Kissimmee hosted a roundtable discussion on transportation where County Commissioner Brandon Arrington spoke for the first time publicly about the crash.
[VIDEO BELOW: Trooper Steve On Patrol visits crash site | STORY CONTINUES AFTER VIDEO]
Arrington also used the opportunity to speak about the transportation needs of Poinciana as a whole, including the federal funding needed for a Poinciana Parkway, 429 Expressway, and an I-4 connector project that Arrington said was important for Poinciana and the future growth pattern of the east side of Osceola County.
Michele Torres, who has lived near the corner of San Miguel Road and Laurel Avenue for years, says she feels like leaders are finally paying attention to Poinciana.
“That’s what we needed a long time ago, because as a community collectively that’s how we all feel, like we don’t matter,” Torres said.
Torres was one of the first people who rushed to help at the scene of Sunday’s crash. She has since spoken to the victim’s families and her neighborhood about the need for changes to be made.
Torres told News 6 she would like to see speed bumps installed, and maybe a roundabout, in the future.
“He would not have hit at a devastating speed where those children didn’t have a chance,” said Torres, referring to the driver whom troopers say was responsible for the crash.
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