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Tragedy grips ECHS again
Students mourn the loss of another member of the class of 2011 in an auto accident
hug mother
Students gather to embrace Vicky Stafford, the mother of Josh Stafford, who was killed Monday night in an accident near the intersection of Midland and Courthouse roads. - photo by Photo by Calli Arnold

For the third time in less than a year, hundreds of friends and family gathered in the Effingham County High School gym Wednesday night to mourn another student’s passing.

Josh Stafford, 18 and a senior at ECHS, was pronounced dead on the scene of a car accident Monday night on Midland Road, after the Honda Civic he was riding in collided with an Acura, ripping and disfiguring the vehicle so badly that Stafford and the driver, Wade Hall, 18, had to be cut out.

“That was an eye opener for me,” said Alexis Kirby, cousin to Hall and close friend of Stafford. “Just don’t be stupid on the road. When you get in your car, please be safe; wear your seatbelt; don’t drink and drive. That’s my biggest fear is that I might get into a wreck.”

For the complete story, see Friday's edition of the Effingham Herald.