Two-vehicle accident closes Chester Bridge

<span>A two-vehicle accident last Thursday morning closed the Chester Bridge for about an hour.</span>

<span>According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol accident report, 24-year-old Chester resident Gregory Hartman was driving a 2002 Jeep Wrangler northbound on Missouri Route 51 near the Chester Bridge when he entered the southbound lane.</span>

<span>The Wrangler then struck the trailer of a 1998 Kenworth tractor-trailer driven by 59-year-old Kevin Cox, of Percy. Chester Fire Chief Marty Bert said the Wrangler partially went under the rear tires of the larger vehicle.</span>

<span>The Chester Fire Department was paged to provide extrication for Hartman, who was taken to Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis with serious injuries. Cox was not injured in the accident.</span>

<span>"He was talking and everything," Bert said of Hartman. "He had a leg injury and some lacerations to his shoulder."</span>

<span>Bert said the extrication was a little more difficult due to the jeep being close to the railing of the bridge.</span>

<span>"It was a little tougher because you don't have enough room to get completely around the vehicle," Bert said.</span>

<span>Bert told the Herald Tribune he did not know why the accident happened, but said a witness traveling behind Hartman's vehicle reported it was a swift lane change.</span>

<span>A second witness, Michael Carroll, came to the Herald Tribune last Friday and offered his view of the accident. According to Carroll, he was traveling two vehicles behind Hartman.</span>

<span>"We were coming across the bridge and we heard a 'pow,'" he said. "The tires of the semi drifted into the opposite lane and clipped the jeep."</span>

<span>The accident occurred at 8:25 a.m. Firefighters with the Perry County Rural Fire Association provided a landing zone for the medical helicopter.</span>

<span>The Wrangler was totaled in the collision, while the Kenworth received moderate damage. The accident remains under investigation.</span>