A 71-year-old Hamilton man was airlifted to a Kansas City hospital after his SUV collided with another vehicle at a Caldwell County intersection Tuesday morning, totaling both vehicles and leaving a 36-year-old Kingston woman with moderate injuries. The crash happened around 7:05 a.m. at the intersection of Route W and Jewell Drive, about seven miles south of Kidder.
According to KTTN, the Hamilton man was driving a 2013 Ford Escape eastbound on Jewell Drive when, per the Missouri State Highway Patrol, his vehicle entered the path of a 2020 Chevrolet Traverse driven by the Kingston woman as she approached the intersection heading north on Route W. The Chevrolet struck the right side of the Ford with its front end, according to the outlet's account of the patrol's report.
The impact sent the Chevrolet Traverse off the east side of the roadway and into an embankment, where it came to rest facing northeast, KTTN reports. The Ford Escape rotated counterclockwise after the collision and ended up in the northbound lane of Route W, facing northwest. Both vehicles were totaled, and Legacy Tow and Recovery removed them from the scene, per the same report.
Serious Injuries, Flight to Kansas City
The Hamilton man suffered severe injuries in the crash, and KTTN reports he was transported by Life Flight Eagle to Truman Medical Center. KQ2 likewise reported that the man was flown to Truman Medical Center for serious injuries. Per KTTN, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said he was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash, a detail also reported by KCHI, which noted simply that he was not wearing a safety belt and had serious injuries.
The Kingston woman suffered moderate injuries, according to KTTN, which reported that the highway patrol said she was wearing her seat belt. Accounts differ on where she was taken afterward: KTTN reported she was transported by Cameron ambulance to Liberty Hospital, while KQ2 reported she was taken to Liberty Hospital, and Northwest Missouri Info reported she was transported to Cameron Regional Medical Center. The outlets also differ on which driver lived where — KTTN and most other reports place the 71-year-old man in Hamilton and the 36-year-old woman in Kingston, while News-Press Now reported the man was from Kingston and the woman from Hamilton.
Patrol Leads Investigation With County Assist
The Missouri State Highway Patrol investigated the crash, with the Caldwell County Sheriff's Office assisting, according to KTTN's report. The Missouri State Highway Patrol's own online crash database notes that such postings reflect preliminary information on motor-vehicle injury and fatal crashes the patrol investigates and does not include crashes handled by outside agencies.
Northwest Missouri Info's account of the collision described the Ford Escape crossing the intersection into the Chevrolet's path, with the Ford ultimately striking the side of the Chevrolet and the Chevrolet forced off the road into the embankment — a sequence broadly consistent with KTTN's report, though the outlets vary on some specifics of impact and vehicle positioning.
