A campus memorial service for juniors Zachary Tucker and Ben Caraco, who were killed in a one-car accident last Friday, will be held Tuesday, March 9 at 7 p.m. in Finney Chapel.

Just after 11 p.m. on Friday, Tucker and Caraco were driving southbound on South Professor Street when Tucker lost control of the vehicle. Both students died instantly when their car split in half after a sidelong impact with a tree.

Both students suffered massive head trauma and multiple bone fractures upon collision, Lorain County coroner Paul Matus said.

Preliminary investigations found that the vehicle was traveling at a high speed when it lost control and became airborne on the Plum Creek Bridge. The car rotated counterclockwise and struck a tree in front of Old Barrows. The front of the car settled on Old Barrows’ lawn after being torn away from the back end, which rested on the curb in front of Johnson House.

Tucker was thrown from the vehicle onto the lawn of Old Barrows during the crash. Caraco remained entangled in the wreckage.

No physical evidence of alcohol or drugs was found on the scene. A complete police report will be released early next week.

According to a letter sent to the campus by President Nancy Dye, Caraco lived in North and was enrolled in the 3-2 engineering program. Tucker was an East Asian studies major and member of the Plague hockey team.

“It’s a tragedy for the families and the people who knew them and also for the whole community,” Dye said.“It’s a devastating thing for all of us. It’s a terrible thing for a college campus because you’re not supposed to die when you’re a college student. It’s just not the time of life and it’s a time of so much change.”

Faculty that worked with Tucker and Caraco say they will be sorely missed.

“Zac was a first rate student,” said East Asian Studies Director and Professor Suzanne Gay. “He was always pleasant and buoyant and up. He was really, really motivated and focused on attaining proficiency in Chinese. The Chinese teachers were all thrilled to have him in their classes.”

“Ben may not have earned the highest grades in my class, but he was one of my finest students,” physics professor John Scofield said. “He possessed a quiet confidence that stemmed from knowing who he was. He was comfortable with himself, and made others comfortable around him. He had great integrity, a wonderful sense of humor and an uncommon capacity to care for others. I miss him terribly.”

Fellow students also spoke highly of Tucker and Caraco.

“Ben was a real nice, cheery guy and was great to work with,” said senior Paul Park, Caraco’s lab partner. “He had a close circle of friends who are pretty devastated right now.”

“Zac was a huge teddy bear and was great fun to be around,” said senior Dan Cole, Tucker’s hockey teammate.

Buses to Tucker’s services in Montclair, New Jersey and group discounts on flights to Caraco’s services in Berkeley, California are being organized, according to Associate Dean of Students Bill Stackman.

Gay, one of Tucker’s instructors, encouraged people to visit the East Asian Studies website at www.oberlin.edu/eas, where comments from friends and faculty are being posted.

Students are invited to participate in a planning meeting for the March 9 services on Monday, March 1 at 4:30 p.m. in Wilder 115.