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New Stanton Rollover Crash Leaves 2-Year-Old Girl, Her Mother, Another Woman Injured

NEW STANTON (KDKA) – Three people, including a little girl, were injured in a violent crash Tuesday that scattered debris over the highway and shut down part of Route 119 in Westmoreland County.

According to emergency dispatchers, the crash happened on the northbound side of Route 119 in New Stanton, near the Youngwood exit. The crash was reported around 10 a.m.

The crash involved a Cadillac Escalade and a Subaru sedan. The Escalade appears to have rolled several times before coming to rest on its roof in the grassy median.

"The operator of the Subaru pulled off to the left side of the road on a bridge, and that bridge doesn't allow room for a vehicle to pull off to the left-hand side," said Trooper Steve Limani, of Pennsylvania State Police.

Moments later the SUV, driven by Kristina Cossell of Connellsville, slammed into the back of the Subaru driven by a Kathleen Shook of Canonsburg. The Escalade rolled and flipped several times.

"The driver of that vehicle was unbelted and subsequently ejected from the vehicle," said Trooper Limani.

Cossell's 2-year-old daughter was also in the Escalade. Medical helicopters used 119 North as a landing pad to take Cossell to Allegheny General Hospital where she was last listed in serious condition.

Seconds later, another helicopter landed and took Cossell's little girl to Children's Hospital. She suffered a broken leg.

"The fact that the child was in a safety seat most likely saved the child's life," Trooper Limani said.

Shook was taken to Excela Frick Hospital in Mount Pleasant with minor injuries. As to why she stopped where she did, investigators have a theory.

"We believe she wasn't sure if she should get off the exit, which was 119 North across from where she was located," Trooper Limani said.

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