2 dead in Monroe Co. crashes, officials say

Two people died after two separate car crashes Monday in Monroe County, officials announced.

The first incident involved a Florida man who died in a crash in Frenchtown Township reported at 5:19 p.m., the Monroe County Sheriff's Office said in release.

The 69-year-old from Beverly Hills, Florida was driving a maroon 2014 Ford F-150 pick-up truck northwest on Enrico Fermi Drive when the car veered off-road to the east, according to the statement.

The Ford veered over to railroad tracks entering a field and landed in a drainage ditch to the southeast, according to the release.

The Ford's airbags did not deploy, though the man was wearing his seat belt, according to the release.

The man was pronounced dead at a Corewell Health Hospital in Trenton.

Officials did not further identify the man, citing a pending notification for his next-of-kin.

County officials are still investigating the crash but do not believe alcohol and speed were factors, according to the release.

The second crash was reported around 11:45 p.m.

Gary L. Akridge, 37, died after veering across the center line and striking another car on Telegraph Road head-on, sheriff's officials said in release.

Officials believe speed and careless driving were factors leading up to the crash.

The Monroe man was driving northbound on Telegraph through Erie Township with a 41-year-old Monroe woman when his black 1995 GMC Sierra struck a gray 2014 Chevrolet Equinox in the opposite lane, according to the statement.

A 58-year-old Dearborn resident was driving the Chevrolet with a 21-year-old from Toledo in the passenger seat. who was not wearing a seatbelt, according to the release.

The Chevy skidded to the ditch on the west side of Telegraph while the GMC flipped onto its right side in the middle of the road without deploying its airbags, authorities reported.

A 19-year-old Monroe woman was driving northbound on Telegraph Road in a white 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee when she came upon the scene of the crash, according to the release.

She veered her car to the west to avoid the GMC but struck the front end of the car, pushing the GMC backwards to the northbound shoulder of the road.

The woman stopped her car on the westside shoulder of Telegraph shortly after, according to the release.

Akridge was pronounced dead at the scene.

First responders took the woman and the passenger in Akridge's car to ProMedical Toledo Hospital in stable condition, while the two in the Chevy were taken to St. Vincent's Hospital in Toledo in stable condition.

MSCO asks that anyone with information on either crash call (734) 240-7541.