A two-vehicle injury accident Friday afternoon on the Canadian Pacific bridge on Ryan Lane west of Mitchell Road in Chillicothe has left the bridge closed.
The Chillicothe Fire Department reports it used extrication tools to remove the driver of a pickup truck that was lying on its passenger side along the railway, placed the person on a backboard and stokes basket, and waited for an air medical helicopter to arrive.
The driver of the westbound vehicle sustained serious injuries and was flown to an area hospital for treatment while the driver of the other car, with minor injuries, refused care at the scene and was released by the police department.
The vehicles, which were eastbound and westbound, collided near the crest of the Canadian Pacific bridge before the westbound vehicle overcorrected and ran off the north side of the bridge, causing the vehicle to fall about 24 and a half feet to the railway line below. The eastbound vehicle struck the south railing of the bridge and continued east off the bridge into a field.
The police department notes the bridge is no longer in usable condition due to damage from the accident, and it is closed to vehicles. Ryan Lane is closed from Mitchell Road to Industrial Road and is blocked off by temporary barricades. Permanent barricades are to be installed.
Agencies assisting the Chillicothe Police Department include the Chillicothe Department of Emergency Services and Street Department, Livingston County Sheriff’s Office, Canadian Pacific Railway Police and Canadian Railway crew, Highway Patrol, Chillicothe Truck Repair and Towing, and Life Flight Eagle.
The names of the drivers involved in the crash were not released.
