I-55 CRASH KILLS MAN, TWO INJURED IN ILLINOIS

One person was killed and four were injured in three traffic accidents in the area over the weekend.

Larry Vaughn, 40, of St. Louis, was killed in a one-vehicle accident Saturday at 11 p.m. one mile south of Sikeston on Interstate 55, the Missouri Highway Patrol said.

Vaughn lost control of his pickup truck, which overturned several times. He was ejected from the truck and was not wearing a seat belt, said the patrol.

Two people were injured, one seriously, Sunday in a one-vehicle accident four miles south of Dongola, Ill., reported Illinois State Police.

Katherine Hughes, 28, of Winona, Miss., was injured seriously, said state police. She was taken to Union County Hospital.

Also injured was a passenger in the car, Maverick Hughes, 33, of Winona, Miss. He had minor injuries and was treated and released at Union County Hospital, police said.

The accident happened at 10 a.m. Sunday on I-57. Katherine Hughes was driving a car that was pulling another car with a tow bar. The towed vehicle began to swerve out of control, causing Hughes to lose control of the car she was driving. Both vehicles went into the median and over turned, said state police.

Two people were injured in an accident Sunday at 1:15 p.m. on Highway 51 just south of the Pulaski-Alexander counties line, Illinois State Police reported.

Ruth Clifford, 68, of Villa Ridge, Ill., received "major injuries," police said. She was not treated at either Cape Girardeau hospital.

The accident occurred when Clifford made a quick stop for a vehicle making a turn in front of her. Her vehicle was struck in the rear by a pickup truck driven by Freddie L. Green, 33, of Mounds, Ill., who was uninjured. But a passenger in the truck, James Tucker, 31, Cairo, had minor injuries and sought medical treatment on his own, said state police.