BLANCHARDVILLE - A Blanchardville teen was killed when the vehicle in which he was a passenger crashed at about 11 p.m. Thursday on County F, about one mile west of Blanchardville.
Mason J. Wedige, 15, was later pronounced dead at Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County.
Wedige was a freshman at Pecatonica High School. He was a lineman for the Pecatonica-Argyle football team.
Although schools were officially closed Friday for a state-wide teacher convention, Pecatonica High School Principal Aaron Lancaster said the school was opened and counseling offered to students.
"We want to provide an opportunity for the kids to be together," he said. "It's very important we give them a chance to grieve together. They can use each other to get through this."
Lafayette County Sheriff's Department deputies, along with the Blanchardville Fire Department, Blanchardville Emergency Medical Services, Blanchardville Police Department, Argyle EMS and the Argyle Police Department responded to the scene.
Deputies report a 1998 Ford pickup truck driven by Jeffery D. Wunder Jr., 17, Blanchardville, was eastbound on County F when it went out of control, left the road and overturned down an embankment. The vehicle caught fire, and the fire was extinguished by Blanchardville firefighters.
Wunder sustained non-life threatening injuries. He was transported to Memorial Hospital and later released. Wunder is also a student at Pecatonica High School.
Lafayette County Sheriff Scott Pedley said speed appears to be the primary factor in the crash. He said alcohol was present at the scene.
Neither Wunder nor Wedige were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash.
An investigation into the crash continues and all reports will be forwarded to the Lafayette County District Attorney's office, Pedley said.
Pedley said it will take a couple of weeks for the toxicology tests to be completed.
This is the fifth fatal traffic crash in Lafayette County this year.
Mason J. Wedige, 15, was later pronounced dead at Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County.
Wedige was a freshman at Pecatonica High School. He was a lineman for the Pecatonica-Argyle football team.
Although schools were officially closed Friday for a state-wide teacher convention, Pecatonica High School Principal Aaron Lancaster said the school was opened and counseling offered to students.
"We want to provide an opportunity for the kids to be together," he said. "It's very important we give them a chance to grieve together. They can use each other to get through this."
Lafayette County Sheriff's Department deputies, along with the Blanchardville Fire Department, Blanchardville Emergency Medical Services, Blanchardville Police Department, Argyle EMS and the Argyle Police Department responded to the scene.
Deputies report a 1998 Ford pickup truck driven by Jeffery D. Wunder Jr., 17, Blanchardville, was eastbound on County F when it went out of control, left the road and overturned down an embankment. The vehicle caught fire, and the fire was extinguished by Blanchardville firefighters.
Wunder sustained non-life threatening injuries. He was transported to Memorial Hospital and later released. Wunder is also a student at Pecatonica High School.
Lafayette County Sheriff Scott Pedley said speed appears to be the primary factor in the crash. He said alcohol was present at the scene.
Neither Wunder nor Wedige were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash.
An investigation into the crash continues and all reports will be forwarded to the Lafayette County District Attorney's office, Pedley said.
Pedley said it will take a couple of weeks for the toxicology tests to be completed.
This is the fifth fatal traffic crash in Lafayette County this year.