Smoke Contributes To Crash

A head-on crash on a smoke-covered road sends three people to the hospital.

According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, a Ford F 150 pickup truck was headed west on Mulberry Road in Ottawa County. At the same time a Jeep Grand Cherokee was headed east.

Troopers say that there was a field fire on the north side of the road, which was blowing smoke and reducing visibility. The two vehicles hit head-on in the smoky haze.

The driver of the truck, 25-year-old Jeffery Schmidtline of Barnard was hurt. Both occupants in the SUV were also hurt. They are 41-year-old Janelle Woodruff and 19-year-old Heather Woodruff both from Minneapolis. All three were transported to the hospital in Salina.

Troopers say all occupants of both vehicles were buckled up.

The crash happened at 3:05 Saturday afternoon a mile north of Minneapolis on Mulberry Road in Ottawa County.