AUBURN – Today at approximately 7:45 a.m., Indiana State troopers responded to a report of a pedestrian having been struck by a vehicle on County Road 11A over I-69.
Master Trooper Ben Kirk was the first on scene within two minutes of the call, and upon his arrival found a highway maintenance worker laying in the roadway apparently injured and in distress. There were several motorists and several other maintenance workers on the scene providing assistance to the injured worker.
Trooper Kirk conducted a quick assessment for injuries and found that there was severe bleeding coming from the injured’s right arm and found him to be in and out of consciousness. Trooper Kirk applied a tourniquet to control the bleeding and then turned medical care over to Parkview Emergency Service personnel arriving on the scene.
Trooper Kirk’s preliminary investigation identified the injured maintenance worker as 29-year-old Yancy J. Anderson, of Knox, IN.
Further investigation revealed that Yancy had been walking along the north edge of the County Road 11A overpass for I-69, trimming weeds. Anderson attempted to cross the roadway, and in doing so, walked into the path of an oncoming (eastbound) 2005 Chevrolet cargo van driven by Robert W. Kahlke, 66, of Garrett, IN. The initial collision with Kahlke’s van sent Anderson airborne into the path of a second vehicle, a westbound 2019 Dodge Ram pickup truck, driven by Brent Carver, 31, of Auburn, IN.
After being stabilized by paramedics, Anderson was transported from the scene by Parkview EMS to a local Fort Wayne area hospital in serious condition.
Trooper Kirk’s investigation did not find fault on behalf of the drivers involved. Both drivers cooperated fully with the investigation process and submitted to the mandated chemical testing procedures required by Indiana law for all drivers involved in a serious bodily injury crash..
Trooper Kirk was assisted at the scene by several troopers from the Fort Wayne Post, the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department, Auburn Fire Department, and Parkview EMS personnel.
