Child among 3 critically injured in Merrill Road crash

A child was among three people injured in a crash Thursday afternoon on Merrill Road. (WJXT)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Two men and a young boy suffered critical injuries Thursday afternoon in a crash on Merrill Road, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.

Aerials from Sky4 showed a white SUV that had slammed into a power pole along Merrill Road just in front of a church, across from Columbine Drive.

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Police said the white Dodge Journey was headed east on Merrill Road when, according to witnesses, it suddenly made a hard left like it was trying to make a U-turn or had suffered a mechanical failure, and slammed into the pole.

A boy about 3 or 4 years old in the backseat was wearing a seatbelt but was not in a child seat, police said.

Lt. Rich Buoye said the child and two adult men riding in the front of the SUV were all taken to area hospitals with life-threatening injuries. He said at last word the child was doing better but was “not out of the woods yet.”

It’s unclear how fast the SUV was going, but Buoye said the speed limit in the area is 45 mph. The SUV was the only vehicle involved in the crash.

All westbound lanes of Merrill Road were closed and traffic was rerouted onto Columbine Drive during the investigation.