Ocean Springs teen killed in Stone County, MS, collision. Here are the details

An Gautier High School graduate was killed in an early morning collision in Stone County Tuesday. The incident happened at around 2 a.m., on Highway 49 near Herschel Road, said Stone County Coroner Wayne Flurry.

“Three Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College students were traveling in a vehicle that was struck by another vehicle,” Flurry said. “All of them were traveling north.”

Sedhari Saniya Watson-Person, 19, was riding in the backseat of a Kia Optima driven by Kyla Watkins, 18, when their vehicle collided with a Dodge Charger driven by Beaumont, Mississippi, resident Valerie Smith.

Flurry pronounced Watson-Person dead at the scene.

Watkins and a second passenger Tatyanna Richmond, also from Ocean Springs, were injured and taken to the hospital. Smith was also sent to the hospital with injuries.

The Mississippi Highway Patrol is investigating the collision.

This story was originally published December 5, 2023 at 5:36 PM.

Mona Moore

Sun Herald

Mona Moore was a Service Journalism Desk Editor for the Sun Herald in Mississippi; Mahoning Matters in Ohio; and the Ledger-Enquirer and Telegraph in Georgia. Originally from West Covina, California, she holds a bachelor’s and master’s in corporate and public communication from the University of South Alabama. Mona’s writing and photography have been recognized by press associations in Mississippi, North Carolina and Florida.