Red Willow County Sheriff Kevin Darling
McCook, Neb. -First responders responded to a two-vehicle accident near McCook on Highway 83 on Monday that resulted in injuries according to officials.
McCook dispatch paged McCook ambulance to respond to South Hwy 83 for a two-vehicle accident with injuries. Additionally Red Willow Rural Western Fire was sent. Red Willow Sheriff's Office responded when the page went out.
On arrival McCook Ambulance crew and volunteers along with Rural Western and Fire Chief Harpham were stabilizing and preparing to extricate the driver of Vehicle #2.
Vehicle #1 was a Weather Craft heavy lift box truck while #2 was a FedEX van. The scene indicated that vehicle #1 was going up the area known as M Hill south of road 712 and Hwy 83, in the slow-moving vehicle lane. Vehicle #2, also southbound in the slow-moving lane at approximately highway speeds ran directly into the rear box of vehicle #1.
Vehicle 2 airbags were deployed. The driver, however, was trapped by the dash moving back and down and the windshield was shoved back into the driver as well. Eventually the steering wheel was cut out, the dash pried off, and the driver extricated and transported to McCook Community Hospital.
Red Willow County Sheriff says no additional information is available on the driver's condition or transfer beyond McCook. Driver #1 refused medical treatment even though his head hit the windshield on impact.
Darling notes as well that Weather Craft fellow employees traveling with the truck immediately deployed fire extinguishers, to make this scene just a bad accident and not a fatality. Darling wishes thanks to a passerby that used their vehicles to slow traffic and protect the scene and the victim.