Ronald W. "Ronnie" Ward
69
Ronald W. "Ronnie" Ward
03/26/1959 - 06/13/2005
Accident kills one, injures another
SIBERIA - One state highway worker was killed and another injured Monday morning, June 13, 2005, after they stopped to pick up debris on Indiana 145.
Four Indiana Department of Transportation workers noticed the debris and stopped the pickup truck they were in at about 7:44 a.m. approximately 100 yards south of the Perry-Dubois county line, according to a preliminary report from the Indiana State Police. A semi-tractor pulling two flatbed trailers rounded a curve in the road, and the two workers who exited the pickup truck, Ronald W. Ward, 46, of Tell City, and another worker, of Birdseye, attempted to run to safety. Ward was killed when he slipped and fell under the pickup truck, whose driver was also attempting to get out of the oncoming vehicle's path. The other worker was injured when he also fell. He was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital in Huntingburg. His injury wasn't considered life-threatening.
The driver of the 18-wheeler braked and missed the pickup truck and workers. He was not injured.
A public-information officer for the state police, said the area features hills and curves, but the investigation, which is continuing, showed the INDOT workers were using flashing lights on their vehicle to alert approaching motorists.
Source: Perry County News, June 14, 2005
Department of Transportation worker killed in accident
An Indiana Department of Transportation worker trying to flee the path of an oncoming semi was run over by his road crew's vehicle and killed, Indiana State Police reported.
A second state highway worker was injured but survived.
Ronald W. Ward, 46, of Tell City, Ind., was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, which happened at 7:44 a.m. Monday, June 13, 2005 along a hilly stretch of Indiana 145 in Perry County just south of the Dubois County line, state police reported. According to state police, a crew of four state highway workers were driving north in a pickup truck on Indiana 145 but made a stop in the southbound lanes to pick up some limbs in the roadway that had been downed by Sunday's thunderstorms.
As Ward and another worker were cleaning up the debris, a log-hauling truck rounded a curve to the north. The double-flatbed trailers of the 1995 Peterbilt tractor-tractor were empty at the time. Ward and the worker tried to flee from the oncoming semi, as did the driver of the state's pickup. But Ward slipped and fell and was run over by the pickup's right rear tire. The other worker also fell on pavement and was injured.
Slamming on his brakes, the semi avoided hitting the state's pickup and the two workers inside.
The driver, of Corydon, was not cited or charged, state police said.
"The semi driver never touched him," a State Police Sgt. said. The semi "got stopped in plenty of time, they were in the wrong lane facing wrong way and the semi driver did nothing at all wrong, besides being at the wrong place."
State police did not release the names of the other two INDOT workers aboard the pickup, or whether the worker who was driving would be cited. Circumstances of the crash still are being investigated, the State Police Sgt. said. Once the investigation is complete, the information will be forwarded to the Perry County prosecutor's office for review, which is standard in such cases, another State Police Sgt. said. A state police news release noted the hills and curves in that section of the highway.
The injured worker, of Birdseye, reportedly was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital in Huntingburg with injuries that were not life-threatening. On Monday night, the hospital said he was not admitted.
Source: Evansville Courier & Press News, June 14, 2005
One Highway Worker Killed, Another Injured in Accident
Jun 13, 2005
An Indiana state worker running to escape being hit by a semi is run over and killed by a state highway truck.
State police say 46-year-old Ronald Ward of Tell City and another worker had left the truck to remove debris on Highway 145 in Perry County when a semi rounded a curve. The workers started running to get out of the way and police say Ward fell and was run over by the pickup as that driver tried to speed away from the semi.
A second worker, of Birdseye also fell and was treated for non-life threatening injuries.
Source: Evansville Channel 14 WFIE, June 14, 2005
INDOT worker killed
An Indiana Department of Transportation worker was killed on the job Monday.
46-year-old Ronald Ward of Tell City was with a crew of four on State Road 145 near the Perry and Dubois County line.
Ward and another INDOT worker got out of their pickup truck to collect debris on the road.
That`s when a semi, pulling two flatbed trailers rounded the curve, and everybody scattered.
The semi missed the workers, but Ward slipped and fell under the INDOT truck, which was also trying to get out of the way.
Ward was pronounced dead on the scene.
Source: Evansville Channel 7 WTVW, June 14, 2005
S. Indiana man dies in pickup accident
Associated Press
SIBERIA, Ind. — A state highway worker was killed Monday in Perry County when he slipped beneath the wheels of a moving pickup while trying to escape the path of an oncoming semitrailer.
Ronald W. Ward, 46, of Tell City, had stopped to pick up debris about 100 yards south of the Perry County and Dubois County line when a semi carrying two flatbeds rounded a curve where he had stopped. Ward and another worker, of Birdseye, began running and slipped while leaving the road.
Ward fell in the path of an Indiana Department of Transportation pickup driven by another highway worker and was struck by the truck’s right rear wheel. He suffered fatal injuries. The other worker also fell and was transported to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Huntingburg with non-life threatening injuries.
The semi driver, of Corydon, applied the brakes as he rounded the curve, missing both men and the pickup. State police have not released the name of the person driving the state’s truck, but both drivers will undergo toxicology tests.
Source: Indianapolis Star, June 14, 2005
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