EIGHT PEOPLE HURT IN I-55 ACCIDENT

SIKESTON -- Eight people were injured in a two-car accident Wednesday about five miles north of Sikeston in the southbound lanes of Interstate 55.

A spokesman for the Missouri State Highway Patrol said that at about 3:25 p.m., a car driven by Jennifer Carson, 22, of Crystal City, struck a parked car on the shoulder of the interstate.

The spokesman said that the car on the shoulder had apparently pulled over due to mechanical difficulties.

Five people inside the car parked on the southbound shoulder of the interstate were injured and transported to St. Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau to be treated for minor to serious injuries.

They were Willie Williams, 33; Barbara Butler, 30; Regina Peete, 29; Terrance Peete, 6; and Felicia Key, 18. All the occupants of the parked car were from Memphis, Tenn.

Carson and two occupants of her vehicle Diane Seymour, 16, and Shelitta Hines, 12, both of Ste. Genevieve were transported to Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston and treated for minor to moderate injuries.

The Highway Patrol spokesman said that not any of the occupants in either car was wearing seat belts at the time of the collision.