Published on August 13, 2025 3:26 pm
Last Updated on August 13, 2025 3:26 pm
A 50-year-old Farina woman was flown to a St. Louis Hospital following a fiery two-car head-on crash on Monday night. The collision occurred on US Highway 50 near the Flat Branch Road overpass west of Carlyle.
An eyewitness reported that a car driven by 24-year-old Stephen G. Doward of Caseyville, was heading westbound in the eastbound lane when he struck an eastbound SUV driven by a 16-year-old on a learner’s permit, with Tina L. Schoenfelder, from Farina, as the passenger.
Clinton County Deputy Brett Winegarner and Carlyle Police Officer Mark Taylor were the first to the scene. Upon arrival, they observed one of the vehicles with an active fire in the engine bay, and Schoenfelder trapped in the front passenger seat. Both Deputy Winegarner and Officer Taylor grabbed their fire extinguishers and attempted to contain the fire until fire units could arrive.
After the fire extinguishers ran out, the fire began to enter the passenger compartment. Deputy Winegarner and Officer Taylor quickly realized they had no other choice but to attempt extraction of the passenger. The Deputy climbed into the back seat directly behind her, and was able to reach between the smashed front passenger-side-door and front passenger seat and locate the seat-lowering handle for easier extraction. Deputy Winegarner grabbed Schoenfelder under both arms and extracted her from the rear passenger-door opening. Officer Taylor then grabbed Schoenfelder’s lower legs, and the two carried her a safe distance away from the fire.
Deputy Eben Lisk arrived on-scene as she was being pulled out, and advised that the vehicle was fully engulfed in flames within a minute or two of the woman’s rescue.
Schoenfelder was taken by ambulance to a local hospital and then flown to a St. Louis Hospital.
The 16-year-old driver was taken to a local hospital and later released.
