Sep 11, 2023

2 hospitalized after winds blow trucks over on I-70

Posted Sep 11, 2023 6:09 PM

GOVE COUNTY —Two people were injured in separate accidents from strong winds on Interstate 70 just after 10p.m. Saturday in Gove County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2023 Freightliner semi driven by Mario L. Swain, 33, Branson, Missouri, was parked on the on ramp to eastbound Interstate 70 at Park, when the wind blew over the truck and trailer.

EMS transported a passenger in the vehicle Darius Knowlton, 60, of Springfield, Missouri, to Gove County Medical Center. Swain was not injured.

Four miles east of this accident, a 2019 Freightliner driven by 39-year-old Yahannes A. Wedajo, 39, Denver, Colorado, was parked on the right shoulder of westbound Interstate 70.

Due to the storm,  high winds blew the vehicle onto the drivers side and slid the vehicle and trailer across both lanes, where it came to rest partially in the median and in the passing lane of travel.

EMS transported Wedajo to the Logan County Hospital for treatment of minor injuries.