‘It’s a very sad day in Waveland’: Off-duty Waveland officer dies in car wreck on Highway 603

WAVELAND, Miss. (WLOX) - The law enforcement community is mourning the loss of an officer whose career had just begun. Waveland Police Chief Mike Prendergast confirmed the death of officer Katie Cash Sunday morning.

She was the passenger of a vehicle involved in a car wreck on Highway 603 in Hancock County. According to the Mississippi Highway Patrol, troopers responded to the scene around 3:30 in the morning.

The car was heading north near Paradise Road when the vehicle left the road and flipped over. The driver and occupants in the vehicle, including Cash were not wearing a seatbelt.

She received fatal injuries from the crash and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Cash had just graduated from the police academy on July 16.

“It was her dream, she told me, to be a police officer,” Prendergast said, “I said here’s your chance.”

The 33-year-old leaves behind two daughters.

“It is a very sad day in Waveland,” said Mayor Mike Smith, who has ordered flags in the city to be flown at half staff.

“We will release more information as it becomes available however right now your thoughts and prayers are deeply appreciated,” Prendergast said in a written Facebook post.

Waveland’s Mayor, Mike Smith, said that tragedies like this hits home for the community.

“The city is wrapping their arms around the Waveland Police Department and going to the family of Katie. We want to let them know that if there’s anything they need then we’re here for them. They don’t have to go through this alone,” said Smith.

Both the city of Waveland and Bay St. Louis lowered American flags in different areas to honor the mother of two.

“We’re such a tight knit family in the entire city. We all come together when something like this happens, you’ll see it in the days ahead,” said Smith.

Cash is the second Hancock County law enforcer to pass away this year.

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