Update: Baby Expected to Recover After I-77 Rollover Crash
NEW PHILADELPHIA (WJER) (Aug. 19, 2026) – A baby is expected to recover after being thrown from a vehicle during a rollover crash Tuesday morning on I-77 just south of New Philadelphia.
Ohio State Highway Patrol New Philadelphia Post Trooper Ryan Rainsberger says the crash happened around 8:10 a.m. when a 51-year-old Cleveland-area grandmother reportedly fell asleep while driving northbound. Her 26-year-old daughter, who was unbuckled and holding the two-month-old infant, had switched seats with her mother so she could feed the child.
The crash broke a vehicle window, and the baby landed just outside the car. The infant was flown to Akron Children’s Hospital for overnight observation and is expected to be OK.
The two women were taken to Canton hospitals non-life-threatening injuries. Troopers cited the grandmother for driving without a license, child restraint violations and child endangerment. The mother was cited for not wearing a seat belt and child endangerment.
The crash had both northbound lanes of I-77 shut down for about an hour.