COLUMBUS, Ind.–Two separate accidents occurred during a funeral procession on U.S. 31 in Columbus on Monday afternoon. The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department says in both incidents motorists failed to slow down for the procession.
The first accident occurred near U.S. 31 and County Road 100S. A car crashed into a semi tractor-trailer that had slowed for the procession. The driver of the car sustained injuries that were not life-threatening and was treated at Columbus Regional Health. The driver of the semi was unharmed.
In the second collision, two people were injured and sent to Indianapolis for treatment, one via Lifeline helicopter and the other driven by ambulance. The crash took place at the intersection of U.S. 31 and State Road 7 when a pickup truck failed to stop for the funeral procession.
Bartholomew County Sheriff Matt Myers reminds motorists that Indiana law provides that a vehicle with lighted headlights in a funeral procession has the right-of-way at intersections.