'It was preventable' | One week after deadly crash, Lindenwald neighbors push for end to dangerous driving
Dec 30, 2025
Neighbors in Hamilton's Lindenwald neighborhood are still pushing for solutions to road issues following a deadly crash that killed three people on Dec. 21. Now, city and neighborhood officials have scheduled a meeting to hear a
bout concerns.The meeting is tentatively scheduled for January, according to Hamilton Vice Mayor Eric Pohlman.The three-car crash on River Road near Hooven Avenue killed 35-year-old Milton Alvarez Lagos, 27-year-old Bety Salazar Lopez and 10-year-old Milton Salazar Alvarez.Lindenwald resident Lauren Hall said she has been in contact with their family."I think people should know that it was preventable, and so I think the best thing people can do is take action," Hall said. "As far as (how) they're doing, I'm grateful that they do have a very close community already, and I'm hopeful that those of us that care and have unfortunately become a part of this tragedy can also help them to hopefully process something awful."WATCH: By the numbers, how dangerous is River Road? One week after deadly crash that killed child, Ohio neighbors push for end to dangerous drivingWhen we asked Hall about how often speeding and traffic incidents interrupt her neighborhood, which sits off River Road, she said, "daily.""Weekly, we see where someone has just driven off the road," she said. "I come and go six or seven times a day, and it doesn't matter when you are on that stretch of road, there's almost always some sort of road rage or someone that's cutting someone off."According to Hamilton police, in the last two years, 24 crashes have happened along a 2.5-mile stretch of River Road, which at a point turns into Neilan Boulevard. That stretch is from Knightsbridge Drive to Joe Nuxhall Way and includes Hooven Avenue."We do not have a lot of complaints noted for that area, but it is something that we ourselves see," Hamilton Assistant Police Chief Shawn Fryman said. "It's a potential issue."Fryman said in those same two years, due in part to speed details in the area by police, 400 car stops have been made. Of those stops, 25% resulted in speeding tickets."We're focusing on the egregious speeders," he said. "So, River Road and Neilan is one of our areas that we focus on."According to a crash report, a driver traveling southbound on River Road on Dec. 21 in a maroon SUV went past the double yellow center line, illegally passing three vehicles. When the driver went back into the southbound lane, they hit a curb, overcorrected and hit a red sedan traveling northbound head-on. The driver of the red sedan, which carried the three people who died, went off the road, hitting a nearby garage and fence.Meanwhile, the driver of the SUV continued to rotate, hitting a white truck head-on. According to the report, the speedometer of the SUV driver's car was stuck at 80 miles per hour at the time of the crash.That driver, a 41-year-old man, was taken to UC West Chester with serious injuries. The driver of the third vehicle was not injured.We asked Fryman if there are discussions about filing criminal charges in the case."Yes, we're working with the prosecutor's office to determine if that is the case," he said.The Butler County Serious Traffic Accident Reconstruction Team (START) and Hamilton Detectives are assisting with the investigation.
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