Officers with the South Lake Tahoe Police Department say Mark Hounsell had a contagious smile and a big heart. Hounsell started at the police department in 2008, after serving with the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. His fellow officers say he was a great man and and an excellent cop.
"The police department is struck and in shock," Chief Brian Uhler, South Lake Tahoe Police Department said. "Mark was a well-regarded police officer and certainly well-liked."
Hounsell was killed in a single vehicle rollover, Saturday night, along with his wife, Jeanne and their friend Laura Fisher. Hounsell's four children were seriously injured in the accident and taken to Renown Regional Medical Center.
"We're a small family here at the police department and the city of South Lake Tahoe," Lt. Brian Williams said. "It's like getting kicked in the guts when you lose somebody so close to you and their family."
The group was returning from a vacation, to their home in the Carson Valley when the accident happened. Investigators say Mark was driving the couple's Suburban on Highway 50, east of Fallon. They say Mark overcorrected when the vehicle left the road, causing it to roll, several times.The eastbound lanes were closed for several hours, during the investigation.
While the children are expected to be okay, they will have to grow up without their parents.
"These poor kids don't have mom and dad now to comfort them through the loss of their parents, through the injuries they sustained," Williams said.
"We care a lot about those kids being left without their mom and dad and we will stick together to do everything that we can to look after them," Uhler said.
Williams says Mark and Jeanne have family that have flown into Reno, to be with the children. Funeral arrangements are still being worked on.
Fisher, the third victim, is from Washington, Illinois. Neither Williams nor Uhler knew her but say they know the grief that her family is feeling.
"They certainly were close to us in the sense that they were close to Mark and his wife, and they've experienced the same loss as all of us," Uhler said.
"We can well bet, if she was friends with the Hounsell's, she was a wonderful person as well," Williams said.
The Hounsell family lived in the Carson Valley but Mark worked in South Lake Tahoe. Uhler says he had a way with people and left an impact on both communities.
"Just this morning, I was talking to some folks who knew him and saw him frequently and were expressing their condolences because he was seen as a very nice man that would be willing to help anybody," Uhler said.
If you would like to help the family, a GoFundMe account has been set up. Just go to https://www.gofundme.com/hounsellchildren
