Crash kills child

MAT-SU -- A 5-year-old child who wasn't buckled into a chid-restraint died Friday afternoon following a one-car rollover crash near Wasilla, according to Alaska State Troopers.

The child's mother, 29-year-old Shelly Maddux, apparently lost control of a 1983 Subaru station wagon Friday afternoon, according to a trooper press release. The car veered onto the right side of the road, hit a driveway and rolled three times before coming to rest, according to troopers. Mat-Su Borough emergency workers and troopers responded to the scene around 3 p.m. Maddux and three passengers were all taken to Valley Hospital by ambulance.

The crash victims were Bruce Tice, 33, Shelly Maddux, 29 and Maddux's two children, 3-year-old Celine Maddux and 5-year old Kristin Maddux. Emergency responders performed CPR on Kristin Maddux as she was being transported to the hospital. She was declared deceased at Valley Hospital, according to the troopers.

Troopers also wrote in their release that a preliminary investigation found that none of the four people in the Subaru were wearing a seat belt.

Shelly Maddux was treated and released from the hospital. Tice was listed in serious condition Friday and required surgery; Celine Maddux was treated for non-life threatening injuries, according to troopers.

Trooper spokesman Greg Wilkinson said crashes such as this, in which none of the occupants are wearing seat belts, are becoming less common in Alaska.

"Neither of these children were in approved safety seats, nor were they even buckled up. I'd like to think that that is rare," Wilkinson said.

Troopers may charge Shelly Maddux for driving with unrestrained children in the car, Wilkinson said, adding that he didn't know if any more serious charges would be filed.

Troopers from Big Lake and Palmer responded to the accident, as did three Mat-Su Borough ambulance crews from Meadow Lakes, Big Lake and Wasilla. The crash occurred along Stacy Street in the Vienna Woods Subdivision.