As the snow fell Saturday, the Barton County Sheriff’s Office warned motorists to stay off the roads if possible, and the Emergency Accident Reporting System went into effect. Motorists did not have to immediately report non-injury accidents if no alcohol was involved and the roadway was not blocked, but were advised to report accidents as soon as possible after the storm had cleared.
Great Bend received 13.5 inches of snow and there were several slide-offs, in town and in the county. Here are the weekend accident reports from the Barton County Sheriff’s Office, including two injury accidents:
A one-vehicle accident was reported at 5:37 p.m. Saturday on West U.S. 56 and SW 70 Road. A vehicle hit a wooden post.
At 6:44 p.m., Rickie Maddox reported her vehicle was rear-ended on U.S. 281 at mile marker 108 as she was driving from Hoisington to Great Bend. She was following a road grader and had slowed down because it had slowed.
Several vehicles slid into ditches Saturday evening, and at 7:44 p.m. a snow plow was stuck in the roadway on SE 20 Road, between SE 40 and 30 Ave.
At 6:15 a.m. Sunday, Jerry Carmichael, Great Bend, reported rolling a Ford Explorer in the 600 block of West Barton County Road at 4:50 a.m. and then going home. The BSCO later reported this as an injury accident, noting Carmichael and one passenger, Kelsi Thompson, Great Bend, did receive minor injuries, but everyone in the Explorer had been wearing a seat belt and no ambulance was needed.  The vehicle hit several objects, including a driveway entrance, and rolled one time.
Shannon McLachlan of Healy was also involved in a one-vehicle injury accident, at 10:43 a.m. Sunday, when the Geo Tracker she was driving slid on K-96 and NW 30 Ave., and rolled twice. A 14-year-old female passenger was taken to Great Bend Regional Hospital by Great Bend EMS.