Accidents aplenty during week’s driving conditions
Last week’s storm and the road conditions and poor visibility it left were factors in four accidents at which first responders were on scene.
Accidents were reported Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, Dec. 13-15, in Chase County.
Sheriff Kevin Mueller said law enforcement along with fire, EMS and emergency management stayed very busy during this storm and said all the accidents could have been avoided if people had slowed down or stayed off the roads when conditions were as bad as they were.
In all cases, he said drivers were going too fast for the conditions.
Here’s a recap of last week’s accidents.
After responding to one accident about 8 a.m. Dec. 13, the sheriff’s office received another call at 3:22 p.m. regarding a jack-knifed semi and trailer, partially blocking the northbound lane of Highway 61, north of Imperial near the Darty Schilke residence.
Chief Deputy Mike Dukes and Deputy Rob Browning responded. Due to the blizzard, deputies remained on scene until just after 7 p.m., when Sinner’s of Wauneta was able to remove the semi from the roadway.
Two calls Dec. 14 were received.
A single vehicle rollover was reported at 12:52 p.m. approximately two miles east from the Highway 6 and old Highway junction. Deputy Browning responded along with Imperial fire and Imperial EMS.
The driver of the 2009 Ranger pickup lost control on the icy road, and went into the north ditch, where it rolled once. The driver, Jim Fortkamp, 70, of rural Wauneta was able to self-extricate, Mueller said. He was not transported by EMS and was driven home by a deputy. His vehicle was considered totaled.
At 3:35 p.m. last Wednesday, the sheriff’s office received a call reporting a 2016 Freightliner semi pulling an empty, enclosed trailer was in the ditch. It had been traveling eastbound on Highway 6, west of Imperial.
The driver, 38-year-old Amit Singh of Greenwood, Indiana, hit ice and slid off the road and jackknifed in the north ditch, which punctured the fuel tank. The driver was uninjured, and due to the weather conditions, the deputies remained on scene for two and a half hours conducting traffic control.
The semi was left in the ditch until the next day when conditions improved. Then deputies along with emergency management returned to do traffic control for an hour while it was towed from the scene, Mueller added.
Last Thursday at 10 a.m., NE Dept. of Transportation personnel contacted the sheriff’s office regarding a rollover with two victims near 744 Road and Highway 61, north of Imperial.
Sheriff Mueller and Deputy Browning responded along with Imperial fire and Imperial EMS, finding a 1999 Ford Ranger in the west ditch, facing south, resting on its side after rolling one time.
The pickup driver, Jose Gustavo Castillo Jr., 45, was able to get out on his own, along with the passenger, Severiano Gutierrez, 55. Both men are residents of Imperial, Mueller said. The vehicle was removed by private party and sustained minor damage.
“We also had calls on (other) vehicles that had slid off the road due to the road conditions,” the sheriff said.
Mueller’s office also fielded three separate calls on loose cattle during the storm, two calls north of Imperial and one west of Imperial. They consisted of approximately 10 to 15 head of cattle, he said.
Four vehicle thefts reported past week
The Chase County Sheriff’s Office is investigating four stolen vehicles since Saturday.
Sheriff Kevin Mueller said Wednesday morning one vehicle was stolen in Wauneta, two in rural Chase County and one in Imperial.
Mueller advises residents not to leave keys in vehicles or unattended if the car is being warmed up. One of the stolen vehicles reported was unattended while running, he said.