Cow in road triggers fatal accident

A Mountain Home man died and another was seriously injured in a single-vehicle accident the evening of Oct. 21 on Highway 51, when the two Idaho Air National Guardsmen attempted to avoid hitting a cow on the road and rolled their car into Rattlesnake Gorge.

Killed was SSgt. Jeromey J. O'Brien, 28, who is survived by his pregnant wife, Michelle, a son, Illiam, 7, and a daughter, Aislinn, 4. O'Brien, a passenger in the vehicle, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver, SSgt. Rickie L. Woltkamp, also of Mountain Home, was transported to St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center by LifeFlight air ambulance, where he remained in serious condition.

The two were members of the Idaho Air National Guard's 266th Range Squadron, which operates radar emitters at the training ranges in Elmore County. The radar emitters at the ranges assist in preparing combat aircrews for modern warfare by simulating realistic combat environments, which would have radar signals and associated threatening missiles.

The two were returning to Mountain Home Air Force Base from the ranges southeast of Bruneau when the accident occurred. Elmore County Sheriff's Office authorities said the two apparently attempted to miss a cow on the road, but hit it anyway. Their vehicle then left the road and rolled down into the canyon known as Rattlesnake Gorge that is adjacent to the road. That was where they were found by deputies arriving at the scene.

O'Brien had been in the military for ten years and had lived in Mountain Home the last four years. He had just completed a BA in computer science from Park University and had been accepted into the officer training program at Maxwell AFB.

Memorial services with full military honors will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 30, in Hanger 201 on Mountain Home AFB. Chaplain Maj.Thomas G. Westall, USAF (ret.), will officiate. O'Brien was a member of the congregation of Westall's Mountain Home Bible Church.

A special educational memorial fund has been set up for his children. Deposits can be made at either Wells Fargo Bank or Pioneer Federal Credit Union.