East Cobb Accident Victim Recovering

A college hockey player who was seriously injured in a traffic accident in East Cobb on Friday is still in critical condition but is recovering, according to his coach and the driver of a car involved in the wreck.

Kyle Lysaght, 22, of East Cobb, was rushed to Atlanta Medical Center by Life Flight helicopter after the gray Lexus in which he was riding smashed into a utility pole on Johnson Ferry Road at Woodlawn Drive.

The driver of the car, Matt Baske, 22, of Alpharetta, sent a message that was posted on the East Cobb Snobs Facebook page saying that Lysaght "broke both femurs and his pelvis" and is experiencing a small amount of internal bleeding "but docs say he will be ok."

Baske and Zeferino Trego of Kennesaw, the driver of a Toyota Tacoma pickup truck that struck the Lexus and sent it into the utility pole, both were taken to WellStar Kennestone Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Cobb Police said the investigation into the accident is continuing but no charges have been filed.

In the message Baske said he needed 60 stitches in his head and broke his foot.

According to his Facebook page, Lysaght attended Walton High School and the Kent School in Connecticut and played junior hockey in Oakville, Ont. He is a sophomore on the hockey team at the University of Alabama at Huntsville, and has scored 12 goals in 53 games, according to The Huntsville Times. 

The newspaper reported Sunday that Lysaght's coach, Kurt Kleinendorst, was told by Lysaght's father Martin that his son's condition had stabilized.

"He faces a long, long recovery," Kleinendorst told the Times. "He's very lucky."

Lysaght's mother, Lynne Lysaght, is the editor of Around Walton, a monthly magazine mailed to households in the Walton High School community.

Among the well-wishers sending thoughts and prayers to Lysaght on a UAH hockey message board is John Buccigross, an ESPN studio host and online hockey columnist.

According to Cobb Police, the accident took place took place shortly before 4 p.m. Friday. The car driven by Baske was heading southbound on Johnson Ferry and going through the intersection when the Tacoma, trying to make a left turn onto Woodlawn, hit the Lexus.

Cobb Police told East Cobb Patch the traffic lights in both directions on Johnson Ferry were green at the time of the accident, meaning that vehicles making a left turn must yield.

But a number of readers pointed out that the left turn the Tacoma was attempting must be made without a green arrow signal and is a dangerous maneuver they seek to avoid.