Two women, one from Cottonwood Falls and one from Wichita, were hurt in a wreck near the Lyon-Chase County line Saturday afternoon.
Lyon County Deputy Nathan Rankin says deputies and Emporia/Lyon County EMS were paged out to the 200 block of US Highway 50 west of Road C for what was listed as a multi-vehicle wreck. They found two SUVs had collided head-on.
Emily Horst, age 41 of Cottonwood Falls, and Sydney Payne, age 28 of Wichita, were both taken to Newman Regional Health for injuries. Earlier, Emporia Fire Capt. Ben Lienemann had said one person was transported with suspected severe injuries and the other person was taken with moderate injuries. Rankin did not specify conditions.
Rankin says heavy rain contributed to the wreck. Lienemann says much of the resulting emergency response happened during heavy rain as well.
Both drivers were wearing seatbelts when the crash happened. Lienemann says at least one vehicle caught fire after the crash, but a passerby got the fire out before emergency crews arrived on scene.
Lyon County Undersheriff John Koelsch says several drivers took a wrong turn and got stuck in muddy low-maintenance roads as they tried to get around the crash zone.
5:15 pm Saturday: Second person hurt in wreck at Road C; several drivers stuck while driving away from crash zone
Two people were hurt and hospitalized after a head-on crash west of Emporia on Saturday.
Some details are pending after two vehicles collided on US Highway 50 near Road C before 3 pm, but Emporia Fire Capt. Ben Lienemann says one of the vehicles briefly caught fire after impact. The fire was put out by a passerby before emergency crews arrived.
One person in each vehicle was transported for medical care. Lienemann says one person was taken to Newman Regional Health with suspected severe injuries. The other person was hospitalized with what are being called moderate injuries.
US-50 was blocked in both directions for a significant period of time before a detour was enacted. Eastbound traffic on US-50 was diverted north on Kansas Highway 177 to Council Grove, while westbound traffic was sent north on Americus Road.
Lienemann says the crash and much of the resulting emergency response happened in heavy rain. Lyon County Undersheriff John Koelsch says several drivers took a wrong turn and got stuck in muddy low-maintenance roads.
4:30 pm Saturday: One person confirmed as hospitalized after US 50 wreck near Lyon-Chase county line
At least one person has been taken to Newman Regional Health after a wreck west of Emporia on Saturday.
The crash at US Highway 50 at Road C was reported before 3 pm and involves two vehicles and a fire, although the extent of the fire is currently unclear.
Lyon County Undersheriff John Koelsch tells KVOE News westbound traffic will be diverted north on Americus Road once crews with the Kansas Department of Transportation arrive on scene. There are some conversations about possibly diverting eastbound traffic, but final plans have not been confirmed.
3:30 pm Saturday: US Highway 50 blocked in both directions after injury crash west of Emporia
Emergency crews and law enforcement from Lyon and Chase counties are responding to a reported injury crash west of Emporia.
The crash at US Highway 50 at Road C was reported before 3 pm and involves two vehicles. Additional details are currently pending, but the wreck has blocked US-50 for both eastbound and westbound traffic.
Lyon County deputies and Emporia Fire/EMS are on scene, as well as Chase County Sheriff Jacob Welsh. Conditions have been wet and stormy throughout the emergency response effort.
Get updates on KVOE and KVOE.com.
