Brandon's Story
Brandon was born on February 11th 1983 and died in a one car accident on May 17th, 2001.
He was on his way home from his fiance, April's house at 9:15 pm, just a block from home.
I was told that he fell asleep at the wheel.
It is still so hard for us to believe.
Brandon was graduating from High school the next day.
He was actually coming home early because he had to get up
very early to get to graduation practice.
We don't know if he fell asleep or if someone ran him off the
road but he ran through a barbed wire fence which was off the road about 30 feet
and knocked down a couple poles holding it up which might have knocked him out,
then he traveled a little bit further and then smashed into a big oak tree.
He had several serious internal injuries including the cut of his aorta
and internal bleeding throughout his whole body. Supposedly his heart
stopped beating at about 5am on May 17, 2001, his graduation day and he didn't even make it.
(We are not sure of the exact times because the paper had printed the time wrong.
He left April's house approx 9:15pm and was heading straight home.
His accident happened around 9:30-9:40 pm.)
I was told by the coroner that his aorta artery severed on impact and he would of died, if not instantly
within a few minutes and he would of not felt anything.
It wasn't until about 8am that the people who lived across the street from the
field went out there found him laying dead in his car.
Brandon was a very handsome young man and so full of energy.
He was a best friend to all his friends.
Newspaper Article on Brandon's accident
Senior Killed on Graduation Day
by John Chambless - The Ledger
Lakeland -- A George Jenkins High School Senior who expected to walk across the stage with his graduating class Thursday night was killed in a one-car accident near his home Thursday morning.
At the graduation ceremony, the classmates of the 18 year old Brandon James Krug observed a moment of silence to remember the young man who was looking forward to life after high school.
Krug had told his girlfriend, April Riddlebarger, 17, on Wednesday night that he would pick her up at her home and they would drive together to the ceremony at the Lakeland Center. The two became engaged about a year ago and hoped to get married soon, Riddlebarger said.
Krug left Riddlebarger's home about 9:45 and was driving north on Yates Road, near his home, when his 1991 Honda left the road.
The Honda ran through a wire fence at Brook Drive and Yates Road, then hit a large oak tree in a pasture, said Florida Highway Patrol Trooper Gus Smymios.
There were no witnesses to the accident, which probably happened shortly after midnight, Smymios said.
What caused the car to leave the road hasn't been determined, the trooper said, although he said it is possible that Krug fell asleep.
Some of Krug's friends, searching for an explanation for the death, noted that he had recently been having trouble with the clutch on the Honda.
George Jenkins High School Principal David Laurer said Krug's father, Fred Krug, came to see him in a hallway at the school Thursday morning and told him of the teenager's death.
Laurer arranged for the brief memorial at the graduation ceremony. A moment of silence was observed before the seniors names were announced.
Krug's sister, Tiffany, 17, a high school junior, attended the graduation, where she participated with other members of the George Jenkins JROTC Color Guard.
Tiffany Krug said she would miss her daily talks with her brother. "Whenever I needed him, he was always there," she said.
Although Krug was planning to participate in the graduation ceremony, he needed to take a summer school English class to obtain his diploma, his sister said.
Krug, an avid weigh lifter, stood more than 6 feet tall and could bench-press about 375 pounds, said his grandfather, Link York.
He also survived by his mother, Debra Krug.
Graduating Seniors from George Jenkins High School observe a moment of silence to remember Brandon James Krug, a member of the graduating class, during commencement exercises Thursday at the Lakeland Center. Krug was killed early Thursday in a car accident.
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