Fort Shawnee and the wider Allen County community are shaken after a deadly highway crash Saturday evening left a Lima father and his 11‑year‑old son dead and others injured. The wreck happened just after 8:15 p.m. on February 28 along northbound Interstate 75 near the Cridersville exit, when traffic slowed because of an earlier incident, and a commercial semi‑truck failed to stop in time.
Witnesses reported long backups on the northbound lanes near milepost 118. As cars crept forward or stood still, a 2017 Great Dane semi driven by a 53‑year‑old from Florida slammed into multiple vehicles, including another semi, that were already stopped in the middle of the highway. Chaos erupted in an instant; debris and wrecked metal littered the roadway for nearly a hundred yards.
Among the smashed vehicles was a 2015 Buick Enclave driven by 45‑year‑old Amanda Gipson of Lima.
Riding with her were her husband, 52‑year‑old Hurshel Gipson, and their young son. The impact crumpled the SUV between two big rigs. First responders pronounced Hurshel and his son dead at the scene. Amanda was rushed to Mercy Health–St. Rita’s Medical Center with serious injuries, alongside another motorist, Kayla Route, whose vehicle was also struck.
Additional people involved in the crash, including the truck driver and a man from Michigan, were taken to Lima Memorial Hospital with injuries that were not life‑threatening. The drivers of the other semi and another vehicle suffered damage but did not require hospital care.
Interstate 75 northbound was closed for nearly five hours as crews worked to treat the injured and clear the chaotic scene. Traffic was diverted while Ohio State Highway Patrol and local emergency teams painstakingly removed wreckage and investigated the causes of the crash.
Friends, family, and neighbors gathered in the days since to mourn the Gipsons and share memories of Hurshel’s warmth and his son’s bright energy. Local residents described the loss as a deep blow to the community, one that underscored how fragile life can be in a moment on the highway.
Authorities continue to investigate the collision, but early accounts point to failure to slow for backed‑up traffic as the key factor. For those who knew the Gipsons, the tragedy is a painful reminder of how quickly an ordinary evening can turn into heartbreak.
