FOUR HOSPITALIZED IN HOLIDAY ACCIDENTS

A Cape Girardeau man who spent Thanksgiving Day in the hospital will have even less to be thankful for when he is released, the Missouri Highway Patrol said.

Wetzell Burkett, 39, was flown by helicopter to Southeast Missouri Hospital after a head-on collision on Wednesday evening. Alcohol was thought to be a factor in the accident, in which Burkett's 1988 Pontiac struck a 1989 Plymouth driven by Joleen F. Warren, 19, of Cape Girarsaid.

The accident occurred as Burkett was driving north on Highway 177, north of Cape Girardeau. Police say his car crossed the center line and ran head-on into Warren's car.

Although the accident remains under investigation, McDaniel said speed was probably not a factor.

On Thanksgiving Day, a vehicle driven by Donna J. Allmon, 33, of Burfordville left Route N, 10 miles south of Leopold, struck a tree, overturned and pinned Allmon in her car.

She was flown by helicopter to St. Francis Medical Center, where she was in fair condition on Monday.

Alcohol was the suspected cause in Allmon's accident, McDaniel said.

In an accident Sunday, a car driven by Randy Keasling, 37, of Patton left Route HH near Patton, struck a ditch and burst into flames, the trooper said. Keasling was flown to St. Francis Medical Center.

These were three of 10 accidents blamed on alcohol during the Thanksgiving weekend, said Lt. George Ridens of the Highway Patrol. Forty-three accidents were reported in the 13-county region over the five days, with 18 resulting in injuries. There were no deaths.

This compares to 39 accidents, 14 with injuries, last year, he said. In 1998, three people died.

Across the state, six people died in traffic accidents over the holiday weekend, Ridens said.