Three Monday crashes send four to hospital

Motor vehicle accidents on Monday in three Southeast Missouri counties sent four people to the hospital.

The first accident occurred around 3 a.m. five miles south of Wyatt, Mo. According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Donald J. Cissell, 24, of Charleston, Mo., was driving a Dodge pickup on Route D when it ran off into a ditch and caught fire.

While Cissell was not injured, the passengers in the vehicle, both from Sikeston, Mo., were transported by ambulance to Missouri Delta Medical Center in Sikeston. Ross E. Baker, 22, was treated for moderate injuries and Jena E. Bugg, 21, was in serious condition. All three were not wearing their seat belts at the time of the accident.

Further north, a 10-year-old Benton, Mo., boy was injured after being ejected on a 2005 Honda ATV. The highway patrol reported that around 4 p.m. Ronnie Esner, 45, of Benton was driving the ATV on County Road 236 when it overturned, and his 10-year-old son was thrown from the vehicle. Esner did not sustain injuries but the boy was transported by ambulance to Saint Francis Medical Center, where he was treated for moderate injuries.

Five minutes later a two-car accident sent a 69-year-old Jackson man to Perry County Memorial Hospital in Perryville, Mo. The accident occurred in the northbound lane of Interstate 55 at mile marker 123. The highway patrol said a 2000 Ford van driven by Timothy D. Brewer, 47, of St. Mary, Mo., struck the rear of a 1992 Geo Metro driven by Kenneth Harper, 69, of Jackson.

Both drivers were wearing their seat belts. Harper was taken by ambulance to Perry County Memorial Hospital, where he was treated for moderate injuries.