Teen critically hurt in crash near Seneca and 31st Street South

A 17-year-old Wichita boy is hospitalized in critical condition after a Jeep struck the SUV he was riding in late Saturday.

Wichita police Sgt. Dan Binkley said the teen was unconscious after the 10:50 p.m. collision in the 3200 block of South Gold and was rushed by ambulance to Via Christi Hospital St. Francis. The boy’s condition was dire but had not worsened when Binkley spoke to reporters about 1 a.m. Sunday.

The boy was on the side of the SUV that bore the brunt of the impact, Binkley said. His name was not released.

Binkley said the Kia Sorento SUV – occupied by the boy and three 17-year-old girls – was backing out of a driveway when the Jeep slammed into its passenger side. The Jeep, southbound at the time, then traveled over the western street curb and stopped in the front yard of one of the houses on the block.

Binkley said one of the other teens in the SUV, as well as the 40-year-old man driving the Jeep, suffered minor injuries and were taken to Wesley Medical Center. The girl, Binkley said, had improved by early Sunday and was being kept at the hospital overnight for observation. He did not give a condition update for the man.

The other two teen girls in the SUV were uninjured, he said.

Binkley said police think alcohol may have played a role in the crash. He also said that, based on eyewitness accounts, the Jeep may have been speeding.

The teens and the 40-year-old man all are Wichita residents, Binkley said. It was immediately unclear whether any lived in the neighborhood, which is just south of 31st Street South between Seneca and Broadway.

This story was originally published October 19, 2014 at 12:10 AM with the headline "Teen critically hurt in crash near Seneca and 31st Street South."