Two Killed In I-79 Accident

Two people were killed after being ejected from a vehicle during an accident on Interstate 79 around 5 a.m. Sunday -- a wreck that forced the closure of the northbound lanes near the Racetrack Road exit.

State police said Stormy Lynn Hunter, 18, of Bridgeville, was driving her 2004 GMC Yukon north on 79 when the vehicle struck the left rear of a Pontiac Vibe driven by Nickolas Mercolino, 65, of Pittsburgh.

According to a police report, the impact caused Mercolini’s car to travel into the right lane and onto a hillside, where it “barrel rolled.” The vehicle eventually came to rest on a roof, where it was partially on top of a guard rail.

Both Mercolini and a passenger, Alex Mercolini Jr., 78, of Pittsburgh, were ejected from the vehicle. Washington County Coroner Tim Warco pronounced both men dead at the scene.

Two other passengers in the Mercolini vehicle – Catherine Mercolini, 57, and Linda Mercolini, 64, were flown Allegheny General and Mercy Hospital for treatment. Their conditions were not immediately available.

Neither Hunter nor her passenger, an unnamed 17-year-old girl from McDonald, was uninjured, police said.

The northbound lanes near the Racetrack Road exit were closed from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. while the wreckage was cleared and police reconstructed the scene.

State police said the investigation continues.