An 18-year-old Milton woman who died yesterday of injuries suffered when a car struck a group of cyclists in Arkansas was remembered by her father as “an adventurer and a fighter” — an accomplished athlete who was chasing her dream of crossing the nation on a bicycle before heading to college. 
 
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 A teenage girl from Milton has died from injuries she sustained when she and six other bicyclists were hit by a car in rural Arkansas on Tuesday, authorities said. 
 
 Merritt Levitan, 18, was taking part in a cross-country bicycle tour led by Overland, a summer camps program based in Williamstown. The group embarked from Charleston, S.C., and was destined for Los Angeles. 
 
 It was not immediately clear when Levitan died. 
 
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 At about 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, a car driven by a 21-year-old woman struck seven cyclists traveling north on State Highway 17 two miles north of McCrory, Ark., according to Arkansas State Police. 
 
 Three cyclists were taken to hospitals in Memphis, Tenn. and Little Rock, Ark. by helicopter. Four others were taken by ambulance to local hospitals, officials said. 
 
 An investigation into the crash is ongoing, State Police in Arkansas said, and the Woodruff County prosecuting attorney will determine whether to bring charges against the driver, Teagan Ross Martin, of Newport, Ark. Martin was not injured in the crash, authorities said. 
 
 Early on Thursday, Overland decided to cancel the remainder of the cross-country trek, which was scheduled to conclude in about a month. 
 
 “At this point, we believe that this is what needs to be done to allow all involved time to process their thoughts and emotions while surrounded by loved ones,” Tom and Liz Costley, Overland’s founders and directors, said in a statement. 

 Cyclist injured in crash dies Posted: Thursday, July 4, 2013 5:04 PM EST Updated: Friday, July 5, 2013 9:11 AM EST 
 
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 JONESBORO, AR (KAIT) -- An 18-year-old Massachusetts woman critically injured when a car slammed into a group of bicyclists in Woodruff County has died. 
 
 According to the website of Overland Summer Camps, which had organized the cross-country bike tour, Merritt Levitan of Milton, MA, "died as a result of injuries sustained" in Tuesday's crash near McCrory. 
 
 According to Arkansas State Police around 4:30 Tuesday afternoon, 21-year-old Teagan Ross Martin of Newport crashed into a group of 13 bicyclists also traveling north on Highway 17 near McCrory. 
 
 Martin has been questioned by Arkansas State Police investigators, who say they'll turn over their investigation to the Woodruff County Prosecutor's Office for consideration of any charges being filed against Martin. 
 
 Prosecutor John Bell said Wednesday that authorities are investigating why the driver crashed into the group. 
 
 Bell, however, says there was no evidence that the driver had been drinking alcohol. 
 
 Two people were airlifted to Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock. One person was airlifted to a Memphis hospital, and four others were taken to a local hospital by ambulance. Of the four taken to local hospitals, two have been treated and released. Two remain hospitalized in stable condition. 
 
 ASP says the cyclists were on a cross-country trip that had originated in Charleston, South Carolina. The group's destination was Santa Monica, California. 
 
 The cross-country trip was organized by Overland Summer Camps of Williamstown, Massachusetts, which provides summer programs for kids age 10 to 19. 
 
 Tom Costley, director of Overland Summer Camps, traveled from Massachusetts to Memphis early Wednesday morning, where he first met with the family of the cyclist whose condition is still critical. 
 
 Costley says his group has offered the six-week, almost $6,000 cross-country bike trip called the American Challenge every summer since 1990, and they have never once had a tragic incident like the one Tuesday. 
 
 "We need the community to extend their thoughts and prayers to all of the injured and then their families as well," he told Region 8 News during an exclusive interview. 
 
 Costley made his way to Newport later Wednesday, where a local couple has opened their home to eight of the cyclists. 
 
 "The EMTs were there right away. They were incredibly effective," he said. "Law enforcement was professional and focused. Local physicians have been caring, and the neighbors have reached out to us and shown us their concern and their care. It's just wonderful." 
 
 "That's the positive takeaway for us is you come to a town like Newport, and you get that kind of response at every level," Costley added. 
 
 The bicyclists will stay in Newport until they decide whether to continue their bike trip to California or go back home. Costley is unsure when that decision will be made, but wants to assure everyone that the teenaged bikers' parents will be involved. 
 
 "You should be proud of the community you've built here," Costley said. "It was wonderful for us to have this support and this warmth and this welcome. It's just fantastic." 
 
 ASP is still investigating the incident and says more information should be released later. 
 
 Region 8 News will keep tracking this story and provide the latest information when it becomes available. 
 
 Copyright 2013 KAIT. All rights reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
– A Boston-area teenager was on a cross-country cycling trip when she and six others were hit by a car Tuesday near McCrory, Arkansas. Merritt Levitan, 18, died yesterday from her injuries; the others were hospitalized, the Boston Globe reports. The 21-year-old driver, Teagan Martin, is facing an investigation ahead of possible charges. There's no sign he was drinking, a prosecutor notes, per KAIT8. Two of the cyclists are still in the hospital, the Boston Herald notes. The directors of the program running the Charleston, SC, to Santa Monica, Calif., trip, Massachusetts-based Overland, canceled the remaining miles. "At this point, we believe that this is what needs to be done to allow all involved time to process their thoughts and emotions while surrounded by loved ones," they said. According to the prosecutor, charges are likely—"we’re just not sure what they will be at this point," he tells the Herald. Police are investigating whether Martin was using his phone; he says he was "looking off across the field and didn’t see them until it was too late," the official notes. (Among the week's other tragedies: A falling tree killed a camp counselor near Yosemite on Wednesday.)