An 18-month-old child is dead and her mother is in critical condition as the result of a two-vehicle crash in Scioto County, in which authorities suspect drug or alcohol impairment to have played a role .
According to the Portsmouth Post of The Ohio State Highway Patrol, the collision took place shortly after 7:00 p.m. Tuesday as Brandon Davis, 25, of Portsmouth, was traveling southbound along State Route 73, north of Galena Pike, in Scioto County's Washington Township.
Davis' vehicle suddenly veered across the center divide where it collided head-on with a northbound vehicle operated by Bonnie Kazee, 29, of McDermott.
A front seat passenger in Davis' vehicle, Brooklyn Moore, suffered serious injuries in the crash and was flown by Air-Evac to St. Mary's Hospital in Huntington, West Virginia where she is currently listed in critical condition.
Moore's 18-month-old daughter, Aerilyn J. Lowe, was flown by Med-Flight to Huntington's Cabell Hospital where she was pronounced deceased.
Brandon Davis, Bonnie Kazee, and three young children in Kazee's vehicle suffered non-life threatening injuries in the crash.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol was assisted on scene by the Scioto County Sheriff’s Office, Washington TWP VFD, Portsmouth Ambulance, and the Scioto County Dog Warden.