BLANCHARDVILLE — During the morning commute to school, a Pecatonica High School teenager struck a bus with his vehicle in the rural area between Hollandale and Blanchardville May 11. In the days since, the community has rallied around the teenager involved.
Jake Worthington, a sophomore student at Pecatonica High School, was the lone occupant in his vehicle just before 8 a.m. when he crashed head-on into a school bus, occupied only by its driver. The driver was later taken to Upland Hills Hospital in Dodgeville.
The Iowa County Sheriff’s Office issued a press release shortly after the accident, detailing what evidence they had. The accident occurred on Moscow Road, with Worthington headed southbound on County F at a high rate of speed when he lost control of his vehicle, hitting the bus in the process. The roadway was closed for several hours for cleanup.
Worthington, meanwhile, sustained severe injuries and needed to be transferred to UW Hospital by Med Flight.
His mother, Michelle Worthington, said that he had sustained severe head trauma, broken ribs, and arm and leg injuries. On Monday he was in surgery to repair a broken femur and three bones in his left arm.
“He has a long road ahead of him as we do not know how he will be effected by the head trauma,” Michelle said. “We are waiting and praying all will go well.”
The Pecatonica School District kept parents informed of the accident as information came in.
“I wanted to let families know that there was an accident involving one of our buses this morning,” wrote 4K-5 principal Christopher Rogers about 40 minutes after the crash. “All of our elementary students had made it safely to school prior to this accident. Unfortunately, it is my understanding that this accident did involve another vehicle.”
About 10 minutes later, Johanna Chenous, Pecatonica’s director of special education and school psychologist, sent out another email to parents, staff and students.
“We wanted to let families know that there was an accident involving a high school student this morning. We are supporting our students, families, and staff as we continue to learn more,” she wrote.
Worthington runs track and field, was on the football team this past fall, and is the captain of the Pecatonica High School Trap Team.
“Our Captain Jake, was severely injured in a car accident yesterday,” the Pecatonica Trap Team shared on its Facebook page May 12. “Anyone that knows him, knows he is very competitive, but also a team player. The Pec Trap team invites every to join us & wear a jersey today, or dress for game day, to encourage him to approach every day of his recovery as if it is game day. #iwearmyjerseyforjake”
On May 15 at the Six Rivers Conference track and field meet at UW-Platteville, the coaches of all the schools agreed to honor Worthington prior to the running of the 4x100 relay, an event he competes in.
“I want people to know how appreciative we are of all the prayers and support they have been giving all of us to get through this. My heart is broke, but yet so full,” Michelle said.
