A 39-year-old Jefferson City man had to be taken by helicopter to an area hospital after he was thrown from a van involved in a three-vehicle accident on Saturday afternoon (March 25) at the intersection of Hwy. A and Collins Drive in Festus, Festus Police Chief Tim Lewis said.
He said he didn’t know the extent of the man’s injuries.
The accident happened around 2:20 p.m. and involved a 2006 Dodge Caravan, a 2016 Ford F-550 industrial truck and a 2004 Toyota Solara, Lewis said.
Catherine Young, 34, of Festus was driving the van west on Hwy. A, and when she approached the intersection, which has a stoplight, “she struck the side of (the Ford F-550), driven by John Henry, 29, of Arnold,” who was stopped in traffic on westbound Hwy. A, Lewis said.
Jackie Ball, 39, of Jefferson City was a passenger in the van and was thrown from it, Lewis said.
“It looked like the Caravan bounced off the truck and hit (the Solara), driven by Owen Horsley, 17, of Herculaneum,” Lewis said. “The Solara was turning from Collins to eastbound Hwy. A. He had a passenger, Chloe Lexa, 16, of Festus.”
Lewis said Ball suffered the worst injuries, but Young, Horsley and Lexa all told officers they planned to visit area hospitals for medical treatment.
Lewis said it looked like everyone involved in the accident was wearing a seat belt, although authorities couldn’t be sure about Ball.
“The Caravan he was in was sheared off, so even if he had a seat belt on, he probably would have been thrown from the vehicle,” Lewis said.
He said the accident closed traffic both ways on Hwy. A at Collins Drive for more than two hours.