City officials revealed on Saturday the identity of a man who died as the result of injuries he received in a car accident Friday afternoon at the intersection of U.S. Highway 50 and Industrial Road. Julian Ortiz, 22, was transported by helicopter to the University of Kansas Medical Center where he later died.
The wreck, which occurred just after noon Friday, involved three vehicles and sent five people to the hospital for treatment. An investigation has revealed that Ortiz was southbound on Industrial Road when his car hit a Buick driven by Della Knaus of Garnett and then a Ford Ranger driven by Amy Bright of Pleasanton. Both of the vehicles hit were in the turning lane on Industrial Road.
Witnesses at the scene say the Mazda driven by Ortiz was traveling at a high rate of speed when it hit the two other vehicles.
Dustin Wright, owner of Wright’s Auto Sales LLC, said one of his employees, Chris Bargary, witnessed the accident and had Wright’s fiancee, Krystal Beyer, call 911.
The Mazda Ortiz was driving had ended up on its top in the dealership’s lawn. Wright pulled the two young passengers out of the backseat of the car.
“I ran around the car and saw the driver and only dealt with the car in my yard,” Wright said. “The driver needed more attention than I could give him, and I heard the babies. They were upside down and I couldn’t see them, so I immediately went and found the door of least resistance and just got in there and pulled the kids out. That’s really all I did.”
Knaus was not injured in the wreck; Bright and her eight-year-old passenger were treated and released. Ortiz’s two passengers, ages four years old and 18 months, also were treated and released. Ortiz was airlifted by Life Team Helicopter to KU Medical Center in Kansas City.
An investigation into the accident continues, and Ortiz will undergo an autopsy by the coroner’s office, according to information in a press release from the Emporia Police Department.