An 85-year-old Hillsboro man died Monday evening after a pickup truck slammed into the back of his horse-drawn carriage on Ohio 138 in Highland County. Albert Keim was airlifted to a Cincinnati hospital but did not survive his injuries, while the pickup's 75-year-old driver walked away with minor injuries.
The crash happened around 6:45 p.m. Monday near Worley Mill Road, according to fox19.com, which reported that state troopers responded to the scene. Keim was flown by medical helicopter to University of Cincinnati Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead late Monday, the outlet reported.
The pickup truck driver, also transported for evaluation, was taken to Highland District Hospital and later treated and released, per the same report. The Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating the cause of the crash, though the station's account did not include details on what led the pickup to strike the rear of Keim's carriage, and no citation or fault determination has been announced.
A Second Fatal Buggy Crash in Weeks
Keim's death marks the second fatal horse-and-buggy collision in the region in less than a month. On Sept. 3, 49-year-old Melinda Coblentz of Greenfield was killed when a GMC Sonoma rear-ended her horse-drawn buggy on U.S. Route 50 near State Route 753 in Paint Township, according to WDTN.
Two passengers in Coblentz's carriage, a 17-year-old girl and a 2-year-old girl, were airlifted to Cincinnati Children's Hospital with injuries described by WDTN as non-life-threatening. Hometown Stations reported that troopers said their investigation into that crash remained ongoing, with no citations announced as of early September.
A Pattern Stretching Back Years
The danger facing horse-drawn carriages sharing rural Ohio roads with motor vehicles is not new. In August 2021, 52-year-old Esther R. Wengerd of Bellville died after a truck struck the horse-drawn buggy she was riding in on State Route 314 at County Road 14 in Franklin Township, Morrow County, according to Richland Source.
That crash also involved two juveniles riding in the buggy, and all occupants were taken to Ohio Health Mansfield, per Richland Source's reporting. Ohio's Department of Public Safety maintains an online Crash Report Search allowing the public to look up unofficial crash reports submitted to the state, though it does not offer real-time detail on active investigations like the one into Keim's death.
No further details on the circumstances of Monday's crash, the identity of the pickup driver, or whether any citations will be issued have been released. The Ohio State Highway Patrol's investigation remains open.
