Two seriously injured in Thursday night wreck

Two people were critically injured Thursday night in two-vehicle wreck on St. John Road near Rineyville.

Post 4 Trooper Shannan White said Kentucky State Police received the call just before 7 p.m. Thursday.

Sandra Hatcher, 68, of Elizabethtown was pulling out of her driveway in a Toyota Prius and preparing to turn left on St. John Road, White said.

For unknown reasons, the woman turned left in front of an oncoming Mercury Cougar, driven by James Voyles, 22, of Leitchfield, she said. Voyles attempted to stop and veered left but ultimately struck the Prius in the front driver’s side.

The collision knocked the Prius into a ditch, White said, and sent the Cougar over an embankment.

However, the force of the impact sent the car back over the embankment and the Cougar landed on the roadway facing the opposite direction it originally was traveling, she said.

Hatcher was airlifted from the scene to University Hospital in Louisville with serious injuries, White said.

Voyles and his passenger, Caleb Vallinger, 20, of Statesboro, Ga., were transported by ambulance to Hardin Memorial Hospital, she said. While the driver was released, White said Vallinger later was transported to University Hospital.

Sarah Bennett can be reached at (270) 505-1750 or sbennett@thenewsenterprise.com.