Escort crash sends student to hospital

Escort Service vans were involved in two separate accidents within five hours last week, one of which sent a University student to the hospital with a broken jaw. An Escort van driven by College sophomore Scott McKinney struck Wharton senior Kevin Reish as he was crossing the street in the 4400 block of Pine about 8:45 p.m., University Police said. Reish was hit after he got out of a friend's vehicle in which he had been a passenger and started to cross the street to his house. McKinney saw Reish and slammed on the breaks, but it was too late to avoid striking him, officials said. Philadelphia police and an ambulance responded to the accident and took Reish to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, University officials said yesterday. HUP officials said Reish was discharged in satisfactory condition, following treatment for a broken jaw and facial cuts. Then, at around 1 a.m., an Escort van driven by College junior Michael O'Hare struck the back of a car at the corner of 43rd and Spruce. University Police said the driver of the car, who was unaffiliated with the University, was taken by ambulance to HUP with back and neck injuries. A HUP spokesperson said the motorist, Philadelphian Randolf Ford, was treated in the emergency room and was discharged at 6 a.m. But Bob Furniss, whose Parking, Transportation and Mail Department administrates Escort, said last week he was not aware of any injuries in the second accident and did not believe anyone had been treated at HUP as a result of it. Furniss said there was no damage to the Escort van and he speculated that the other car sustained minor damage. McKinney, the first driver, was "very shook up" and could not continue to drive after the accident, Furniss said. He added that the incident is still under investigation and McKinney will not be allowed to drive until the investigation is concluded. McKinney could not be reached for comment, but University officials said it was McKinney's first accident and Furniss said he was an experienced driver, having worked for Escort last semester. These two incidents followed another accident last week in which an Escort van was struck by a car at 7 p.m. at the corner of 39th and Walnut streets, forcing it into a parked car, University Police said. No one was injured and the car which struck the van drove off before police arrived. Gregory Montanaro contributed to this story.