Three women, including two from Jefferson County, were injured this morning, June 9, in a three-vehicle accident at Hwy. 67 and Berry Road south of Valles Mines in St. Francois County, the Missouri State Highway Patrol reported.
At 10:05 a.m., Tina M. Kester, 51, of Valles Mines was driving a westbound 2010 Dodge Caravan minivan and allegedly failed to yield to traffic headed south on Hwy. 67. Then, Tayler J. Abel, 31, of De Soto, who was driving a 2014 Cadillac SRX SUV, braked in an effort to avoid a collision with the minivan, but the vehicle began sliding, and the front of the SUV struck the right side of the minivan, the report said.
After the collision, the minivan began skidding and ran off the right side of the highway, and the left side of it struck the front of a southbound 2014 Ram 4500 pickup driven by Roger L. Walka, 45, of Festus, according to the report.
No injuries were reported for Walka. However, Kester and Abel were moderately injured, and a passenger in the SUV – Terrilyn L. Martin, 19, of Kutztown, Penn., was moderately injured, and all three were taken by ambulance to area hospitals.
Kester was taken to Mercy Hospital Jefferson in Crystal City, and Abel and Martin were taken to Parkland Health Center in Bonne Terre, the report said.
All those involved in the accident were wearing seat belts, the patrol reported.
The minivan and SUV were totaled, and the pickup was moderately damaged, the report said.