Five air ambulances respond near Edgar Springs
Photo courtesy of Edgar Springs Fire Protection District
U.S. Highway 63 was blocked as one of the four medical helicopters landed at the scene.
By Shari Harris, Publisher
A two-vehicle head-on crash resulted in serious injuries to five individuals and required the response of five air ambulances to the site on U.S. Highway 63, one mile south of Edgar Springs. The accident happened at 3:44 p.m. on Saturday, October 9.
A Licking family was southbound in a 2019 Nissan Kicks when it collided head-on with a northbound 2007 Chevrolet 1500 pickup. Robert L. Burns, Jr., 39, was driving the Nissan, with passengers Kimberly R. Burns, 32, and two female juveniles, ages 9 and 16. Two juveniles from Mountain View were in the Chevy pickup; the driver was a 17-year-old male and his passenger was a 16-year-old female.
All individuals in the Nissan sustained serious injuries. The 9-year-old girl was transported by MU Air Care to University Hospital in Columbia. Mercy Life Line transported the 16-year-old girl to Children’s Hospital in St. Louis. Kimberly Burns was transported by Phelps Air and Robert Burns, Jr., by Air Evac, both to Cox South Hospital in Springfield.
The driver of the Chevy pickup did not sustain injuries requiring transport to a hospital, but the passenger was taken to Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Columbia by Arch Air Care.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol report indicates the Edgar Springs Fire Department, with help from Rolla Rural Fire Department, worked the scene, which the Doolittle Fire Department referred to on their Facebook page as a “serious extrication crash.” The highway was closed for a significant period of time and was used as a landing zone for four of the five medical helicopters. The final one touched down at the landing zone at the fire station in Edgar Springs.
The MSHP crash report indicates neither driver was wearing a seat belt. Kimberly Burns was wearing one, and it was unknown whether the remaining occupants of the Nissan or the Chevy were utilizing the safety devices. Both vehicles sustained total damage.
