Student dies in car crash on Western Kentucky Parkway

Herald Staff

A 21-year-old WKU student died Sunday in a car crash on the Western Kentucky Parkway, the Grayson County News Gazette reports.

Stephanie Campbell, of Louisville, was pronounced dead on the scene by Deputy Grayson County Coroner Howard Tomes. The first responders arrived to scene of the crash near the 106 mile marker at 3:06 p.m.

Campbell’s cause of death was ruled blunt force trauma to the body, Tomes said to a News-Gazette reporter.

Campbell was driving westbound on the parkway in a 2001 Nissan Xterra when she started to drift into the median, over-corrected and lost control of the vehicle, according to the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Jarrod Mudd.

It is not confirmed what caused Campbell’s vehicle to drift into the median.

A witness to the incident told the Grayson County News Gazette he was traveling eastbound on the parkway when he saw Campbell’s vehicle roll across his lane.

Mudd also confirmed the vehicle rolled an indeterminable amount of times before coming to a rest. Additionally, there were approximately 700 feet of skid marks on the parkway, he told a News-Gazette reporter.

The WKU community responded to the Campbell’s death with an outburst of support.

Many students and WKU organizations spoke about how Campbell had personally affected their lives and what a positive impact she had on the WKU community.

During her time at WKU, Campbell was a member of Theta Iota chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta.

The @WKU_AlphaGam Twitter account tweeted, “Thank you to everyone who has shown us so much love and support during this very difficult time. Please keep our sisters in your thoughts.”

Additionally, the @WKUGreeks Twitter account tweeted the contact to the WKU Counseling and Testing Center saying, “If you or someone you know needs to talk with someone about Stephanie’s passing, please contact our office or WKU Counseling and Testing.”

The Herald reached out to Bob Skipper, director of WKU media relations, but he said WKU does not generally give a statement following a student’s death and that Student Affairs would be handling the incident.

The Herald will update this story as more information becomes available.