One Virginia Tech student died and another was sent to the hospital Saturday night after a pedestrian-vehicle accident near 'The Cage' shortly after 6:15 p.m., according to a press release from the Virginia Tech Police Department.
Sophomore general engineering major Christine McNabb, 20, was pronounced dead at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital following the incident. McNabb was from Manassas, Va.
The accident occurred when a 1993 Mercury Sedan struck four students who were walking together on a crosswalk near the intersection of Duck Pond Drive and Washington Street.
The vehicle was traveling on Duck Pond Drive with "The Cage" on the left and Washington Street on the right when the students were hit.
In a statement issued by Larry Hincker, university relations, Hincker said that officials investigating the crash are seeking a second car that pulled out of the parking lot and into the intersection directly before the accident.
Police are looking for the driver of the vehicle, described as a dark color, four door sedan, which may have been a factor in the accident. Police would not say what role the car may have played in the accident.
Sophomore aerospace engineering major Daniel Budzenski, from California, Md., was also taken to the Roanoke hospital. Budzenski suffered a broken femur, fractured skull and internal bleeding.
The other two who were struck were treated for minor injuries at the scene. As of yesterday, Budzenski was still in the intensive care unit in serious condition.
Sophomore political science major Stacie Empie, who considered McNabb one of her closest friends, said she heard the news from McNabb's mother alongside about 20 others in the waiting room of the hospital. Another close friend of McNabb's, sophomore political science major Caroline Kelly, also waited at the hospital for updates on McNabb's condition.
"We reacted horribly because she's one of our best friends," Kelly said. "We were there as soon as we could be; we were at the hospital waiting, and reacted just like anyone would when they lose one of their closest friends."
Another close friend of McNabb, freshman biological sciences major Stephanie Baumgartner said that Christine "always put others in front of herself."
"One thing I will always remember is her big smile," Baumgartner said.
"She was just one of the most fun-loving, high-spirited people I've ever known in my life," Kelly said. "She was so smart and so beautiful, and really just the epitome of an amazing person."
McNabb's friends said she had been dating Budzenski for about two and a half months when the accident occurred.
The driver, Joshua Sales, 20, a resident of Blacksburg, is currently being charged with having an expired registration and no insurance, according to Virginia Tech Police. Additional charges may be filed, pending consultation with the Commonwealth's Attorney. Alcohol was not a factor in the incident.
Sales refused to comment.
Dean of Students Tom Brown is excusing close friends of McNabb's from class Thursday and Friday to go home for the wake and funeral.
The wake will take place at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 28 at the Miller Funeral Home in Woodbridge. The funeral is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 29 at 11 a.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Manassas.
Anyone with any information about the accident is urged to called Tech Police at 540-231-6411.
Tech Police and Wendell Flinchum, chief of Virginia Tech Police, did not return phone calls.