Accident on U.S. 36 kills one, injures two
MORTON -- A fatal accident west of Morton Thursday afternoon took the life of the passenger of a pick-up truck and resulted in injuries to the drivers of the truck and a grain semi.
According to Putnam County Sheriff's Department Deputy Phillip Troyer, the grain truck driver, Richard Hix of Danville, Ill., was stopped, facing west near 5708 U.S. 36, about 3:45 p.m.
Hix, who was sitting in a Crop Transport semi truck, was waiting for an eastbound school bus to finish dropping off students along U.S. 36.
Kenny Comp, the driver of the 4MC Corp. pick-up truck, apparently did not notice the stopped semi until too late and swerved to avoid the back of the semi trailer.
In trying to avoid the semi, the trailer attached to the back of Comp's truck caught the back of the semi and swung the pick-up truck's passenger side into the middle of and partially under the semi.
A passenger in the pick-up truck, identified Friday as Andrew Clark of Decatur, Ill., was fatally injured at the scene.
Comp was airlifted to St. Vincent Hospital, Indianapolis. As of Friday afternoon, he was in stable condition.
Hix was transported to Putnam County Hospital by ambulance.