Teenage Girl Killed, One Injured, in Florida Car Accident

One teenage girl was killed and another critically injured in a one-vehicle accident in Polk County, Florida early Sunday.

Around 2:30 a.m. on Winter Lake Road west of Summer Glen Drive the two teenage girls were traveling in a 1991 Nissan Pathfinder when they lost control,  striking a power pole and overturning, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

Both girls were ejected from the vehicle. When deputies responded to the accident, they were able to move Sara Kay Smith, 16, away from the vehicle just before it burst into flames. Smith alerted deputies that there was another girl in the car, Candra Michelle Rittenhouse, 17, who was then found about 50 yards away from the Pathfinder.

Both girls were flown to Tampa General Hospital. Rittenhouse was killed in the accident. Smith is listed in critical condition.

It was not immediately clear which teen was driving the Pathfinder or what caused the fatal collision. The accident is under investigation.