HARRISONBURG, Va. — One of three James Madison University students killed in a crash in West Virginia Thursday night was from Williamsburg, according to a letter from JMU's president on Friday.
The Hardy County, West Virginia, Sheriff's Office confirmed the crash happened at about 10:30 p.m. on West Virginia Route 259 near the West Virginia-Virginia state line. A car with five 19-year-olds inside crashed into a tree.
Three of the students were pronounced dead at the scene of the crash.
The university identified them as:
- Joshua Mardis, a sophomore, majoring in communication studies, from Williamsburg
- John “Luke” Fergusson, a sophomore, studying media arts and design, from Richmond
- Nicholas Troutman, sophomore, majoring in business management, from Richmond
"The loss our community has felt today is unthinkable. We share our sincere condolences to our university community as a whole, but specifically to the families, friends and others with close connections to the students we’ve lost," President Jonathan Alger said in the letter.
Two other students were flown to the hospital in critical condition.
"It is with a heavy heart and sadness I write to inform you of the loss of several JMU students from a tragic car accident that occurred last night in West Virginia," JMU Vice President for Student Affairs Tim Miller said in a statement.
JMU is located in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and is about a two-hour drive from Richmond.
"It is a difficult moment at James Madison University. There are heavy hearts on our campus as we process the loss of these students," JMU spokesperson Mary-Hope Vass said in a statement about the crash. "We’re also working to provide counseling and mental health support across campus during this hard time."
Sheriff's investigators shared the students were at a club prior to the crash but did not indicate whether alcohol played a role in the crash.
