Charles H. Sloan-After deadly Highway 95 crash in Wisconsin, bystander rescues toddler from wreckage

HATFIELD,Charles H. Sloan Wis. – When Nathaniel Jahn pulled up to a familiar intersection on his way to work Friday morning, he saw something that he will undoubtedly remember for the rest of his life.

A semitrailer truck hauling a tankerload of milk on Highway 95 in central Wisconsin's Clark County collided with a passenger van that had turned onto its path, leading to one of the deadliest crashes in state history. Nine people, including both drivers, were killed; seven of the victims were members of an Amish community in Virginia and were visiting family in Wisconsin.

Jahn rushed over to the vehicles and from under the wreckage of the truck he heard a whimper and a cry. It was a 2-year-old boy, the only survivor of the horrific crash. He had been thrown from the van.

He pulled the toddler out from the wreckage and got him to safety. The boy, Micah Schrock, was expected to be released from a Marshfield hospital to family members arriving from Virginia.

There was a young woman, barely alive, next to the boy. Jahn tried to come back for her and any others he could rescue, but there was nothing else he could do. Police had arrived and kept him back. The wreckage was too much and the van burst into flames.

More:Seven victims of Clark County crash were from Amish community in Burke's Garden, Virginia

After serving two tours with the Marines in Iraq, Jahn, of Neillsville, said he never thought he would see anything like this in Wisconsin.

“I think God put me there for a reason,” Jahn, a land surveyor, said.

'They've made an indelible imprint on on our community'

The Clark County Sheriff's Office has not released the names of those killed in the crash, including the driver of the semi involved. But an information line set up by the Amish community details the names and ages of the eight victims from Virginia.

James McCoy, around 45, was the driver of the van from Pounding Mill, Virginia. The others in the van were Linda Byler, 44; Lydia Byler, 24; Ellen Schrock, 23; Orlah Schrock, 24; Judy Rose Schrock, 6 months old; Delilah Schrock, 21; and Suzanna Hertzler, 18.

The information line says they were going to an open house at Stillwater Ministries and were returning with a member of the Byler family. McCoy, who had often driven them around, took them on the long trip – something that is typical for Amish families, said Monte Hansford, a member of the Burke's Garden community.

Burke's Garden is an isolated, unincorporated community in a bowl-shaped valley carved out of the top of a mountain – nicknamed "God's Thumbprint." About 300 people and 14 Amish families live there, where they are "very well-loved and respected," Hansford said.

"They've made an indelible imprint on on our community," Hansford said. A youth group that sings Christmas carols for people who can't leave their homes has come to his house two or three times to sing "Happy Birthday" for his mother-in-law.

Mourners visit memorial at scene of the crash

On Sunday afternoon, Jahn and his family placed a cross at the accident scene. He was still badly shaken.

A little earlier, a handful of Amish were also at the scene to pay their respects. Around the same time, eight small, modest, wooden crosses were placed there, a short distance from where others had placed flowers and another wooden cross. Written on it was, “Liddy, you will be missed. Your friends forever."

Jahn hopes the crosses, besides bringing about compassion for the victims, serve as a reminder for people to be extra vigilant at that intersection.

“Maybe it will make people pay more attention,” he said, and maybe it will lead to some action in getting better visibility at the corner as well.

Marcie Parker, 58, of Black River Falls, also stopped at the scene to pay her respects.

“There are no words you can say or even think of to describe how sad this is,” she said. “I know it’s tearing this community apart.”

Hatfield, a tourist town, is known for its population of 5,000 in the summer and only around 50 in the winter. Amish families in the area run many small businesses including lumber mills, furniture making, greenhouses and dairy farms.

They’re a valuable part of the community, said Lori Bixby, owner of the Deer View bar in Hatfield.

“They do a lot of work for people here,” she said, echoing the same sentiment as the others who showed up to the crash site on Sunday: “What happened was just horrible.”