Lebanon — Funeral services were scheduled today for a Riley Hospital nurse who died instantly in a crash Saturday.
Samantha J. Burke, 22, Lafayette, was northbound on Interstate 65 when Mark A. Cabbell, Jr., 33, Indianapolis, struck her head-on at 3:57 a.m. Cabbell died shortly after the impact.
Cabbell was removed from his 2000 Chevrolet Blazer by Lebanon and Center Township firefighters.
Cabbell was going south in the northbound lanes of Interstate 65 just south of Indiana 39 when he hit Burke’s 2005 Grand Prix.
A 911 call reporting the crash came about 15 seconds after another alerting police a vehicle was going the wrong way on the interstate, Boone County Sheriff Dept. Deputy Chris Burcham said.
It could be weeks before chemical tests determine if Cabbell was intoxicated, Burcham said.
Rescuers said they smelled alcohol in Cabbell’s SUV, Burcham said.
Burcham was the first officer on the scene, arriving less than a minute after the crash.
A Lifeline helicopter from Methodist Hospital, Indianapolis, was requested, but Cabbell died before the helicopter arrived.
Burke, who graduated from nursing school in December, had worked at Riley Hospital for Children since January. She was en route to Lafayette to attend the funeral Saturday of a friend.
The sheriff’s department was assisted by the Lebanon, Whitestown and Zionsville police departments. Boone County EMS paramedics and chaplains from the Boone County Sheriff Department also responded.
