Driver in Bloxom ambulance accident charged

The driver of a Bloxom ambulance that crashed into the back of a tractor-trailer on April 9 has been charged with reckless driving.

According to Sgt. Michelle Anaya of the Virginia State Police, Jerry Corbett Kellam Sr., of Bennett Street in Parksley, faces the misdemeanor charge following the crash on Route 13 near the Food Lion shopping center in Onley.

Initial reports indicated that the tractor-trailer was stopped at a red light in the left lane when the ambulance—traveling with emergency lights and sirens activated—attempted to pass and struck the rear of the truck, causing the ambulance to overturn.

Kellam and his wife, April Kellam, who was a passenger, were transported to TidalHealth in Maryland. The driver of the Perdue tractor-trailer, Benjamin Albert Smithwick of Windsor, North Carolina, was not injured.

The patient being transported, Amanda Bare of Nelsonia, along with Jerry Corbett Kellam Jr., were both flown by medevac to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.