Community Mourns Loss of Girl, Rallies to Support Families
| Author: Nancy Marks, Reporter Nancy Marks: MT43 News Secretary and News Editor |
Community Mourns Loss of Girl, Rallies to Support Families
Nancy Marks
Reporter
Our community grieves the loss of Townsend Elementary School student Karli Sandidge. The 12-year-old lost her life when she was thrown from a utility terrain vehicle (UTV) that collided with a pickup truck on Highway 287 north of Townsend Wednesday evening, Sept. 13. Her companion, a 13-year-old girl, was also thrown from the vehicle. She was flown to a Billings hospital and was to be released early this week following multiple surgeries.
Broadwater County Sheriff dispatchers received a call at 8:20 p.m. about an accident at Trailhead View Drive and Highway 287. According to the Montana Highway Patrol, the side-by-side UTV was attempting to cross the highway when it was struck by a southbound pickup driven by a 62-year-old Townsend man. He was taken with minor injuries to Billings Clinic Broadwater in Townsend.
Many families whose children are friends and classmates of both students moved quickly to set up Mealtrain and GoFundMe accounts to help defray expenses for the families.
Angie Paulsen, whose daughter is in the same class as Karli, gathered some of the girls and took them to the movies and shopping. Other families did the same. “We tried to distract them over the weekend, knowing how tough it would be Monday morning with Karli not in school,” she said.
Karli was the daughter of Rick and Nicole Sandidge.
Paulsen, the County Clerk and Recorder, and her office coordinated with the Treasurer’s office workers to do a fundraiser for the families by selling bracelets with Karli’s volleyball shirt number and the words “Fly High” on them. The other victim’s name and number with the words “Stay Strong,” will be sold to raise money for the two families. Businesswoman Jeannie Steele and The Mint Cafe stepped in to pay for the 1,500 bracelets. They will be sold on Facebook and at high school ball games.
School Superintendent Susie Hedalen organized an emergency response team Wednesday night which included mental health professionals from Prickly Pear Co-op and local agencies who worked with students and staff through the week and weekend. Monday saw the emergency response team working in the schools along with therapy dogs to comfort the girls’ classmates and school staff members.
Sheriff Nick Rauser said in an interview that he had visited with Karli’s father. Rauser said the family wanted to thank the community because so many people supported them.
Going forward, Rauser said he hoped the Montana Department of Transportation would soon make changes to the highway north of Townsend. “In those several miles of straight road where there is such an increase in traffic between Helena and Bozeman now and all the activity from the new subdivisions with no turn-out lanes, the area is so dangerous to entering and exiting vehicles,” he said. “In contrast, we have seen a decrease in accidents south of Townsend since the new four-lane highway is in, even though cars travel faster.”
Asked if he thought a lowering of the speed limit between Winston Hill and the Missouri River bridge would be helpful, Rauser said the MDOT would have to do traffic studies to determine a speed limit change. He said speed was not necessarily a factor in this accident.
For people who would like to contribute, Opportunity Bank has set up an account in the Sandidge family’s name.