Tragedy Causes Popular Lansing Eatery to Close Temporarily

Lansing's popular Fidler's on the Grand restaurant will be closed indefinitely while its owners recuperate from serious injuries sustained during a multi-vehicle pile-up in Ohio two days before Christmas.

Get our free mobile app

According to multiple sources, nearly four dozen vehicles were involved in a pile-up in eastbound lanes of the Ohio Turnpike between Toledo and Cleveland shortly after noon on Friday, December 23. Four people were reported to have been killed in the incident, including Emma Smith, 19, of Mason, Michigan.

Smith was the girlfriend of the son of Mark and Lisa Taylor, the couple who owns and operates Fidler's on the Grand in Lansing. They were all traveling together for the holidays when the fatal accident occurred.

A message about the incident was posted to the restaurant's Facebook page this week.

Friends, loved ones and customers responded to the message by the thousands with an outpouring of support and shared grief for the Taylor family.

A family friend has established a crowd-funding account to help the Taylors with their mounting medical bills, as they continue to recuperate from their injuries in two separate Ohio hospitals.

Meanwhile, a scholarship fund has been established in memory of Smith, a Mason High graduate, to help future Mason High band students in need attend band camp. According to News10, "Smith was the saxophone’s first chair in the band, participated in both the jazz and marching band, was part of the National Honor Society and volunteered for numerous nonprofit organizations."

Inclement weather is believed to be the chief cause of the deadly pile-up, which remains under investigation.