Salisbury Sisters Lost Cousins In S.C. Wreck

BY JOHN PATTERSON
SALISBURY POST

A van accident that claimed the lives of five children in South Carolina hit close to home for a pair of sisters who live in Salisbury.

Laura Beck and Wanda Hosch lost a pair of second cousins - April Sessoms, 9, and Wanda Sessoms, 7 - in the accident, which happened near Wallace, S.C., on State Highway 9. Authorities say the driver of the van, which was taking six students home from an after-school tutorial program, pulled out in front of a tow truck. The van already had dropped off four students when the wreck occurred.

Beck said she'd last seen the girls and their father - Robin Sessoms - at a funeral just a couple of months ago.

''They were normal, happy children,'' Beck said. ''He (Robin) was very proud of them ... He took a lot of pride in them.

''We had a large family ... and we normally got together in May for family reunions. This will be hard on him (Robin) and the family.''

Beck and Hosch, both carriers for the Salisbury Post, were scheduled to leave today for South Carolina. The girls' funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Friday.

It could be several weeks before prosecutors decide whether to file charges in the accident. The driver of the 15-passenger van said she did not see the truck coming and pulled out in front of it.

In South Carolina Wednesday, counselors went to the Wallace Family Life Center to help staff members and those who attended the various programs deal with their grief.

''We're going to mourn and grieve with the families,'' said Randall Jackson, director of the church-supported community center.

The collision took place at an intersection on S.C. 9 between Wallace and Bennettsville, near the North Carolina line.

The van driver, Shirley Christine Bennett, was in serious but stable condition at Marlboro Park Hospital in Bennettsville. She lost her 10-year-old son, Willie Malachi, in the wreck. Her 11-year-old daughter, Arielle Nicole Malachi, was in critical condition at Palmetto Richland Memorial Hospital in Columbia.

The tow-truck driver, Willie Odom of McCall, was released from the Bennettsville hospital, a nursing supervisor said.

Bennett had worked at the center for seven years and was ''an excellent employee,'' Jackson said.

Besides the Sessoms sisters, half-siblings Phillip Hailey Jr., 7, and Devona Bloomfield, 11, also died in the accident. All were from the Wallace area, Marlboro County Coroner Tim Brown said.

Two of the dead boys ''were my best friends,'' Jackson said. ''We sent Willie Malachi to camp this past summer.'' Phillip Hailey and Devona Bloomfield was a straight-A student at Wallace Elementary School, as was his sister, Jackson said.

A service was held in the school's gym to let teachers and students talk about the loss.

''It's a school where everyone knows everyone,'' Principal Randall Malichi said. ''All the teachers know the kids and all the kids know other kids.''

Counselors from the school system, the Department of Social Services and the community were there to help the youngsters and staff. ''Basically just to give the kids an opportunity to talk out what they're feeling,'' Principal Malichi said.

Three children were thrown from the vehicle, and the van wound up in a ditch.

''It's one of those unimaginable things,'' said Brown, who called it the worst wreck he had seen in 14 years as coroner.

The center, which also offers crafts classes and Boy Scout and Girl Scout programs, is funded by the United Methodist Church.

''We're not doing anything for the next four or five days,'' while the families prepare to bury their loved ones, Jackson said. ''We've just been on standby.''