Two Brown County sheriff’s deputies escaped major injuries after their vehicles collided on State Road 46 East while responding to an emergency call.
Lt. Brad Stogsdill and Deputy Scott Bowling were taken to Columbus Regional Hospital by ambulance, but released the same day: “Just soreness, a little bit of pain from being banged up in the accident. They’re going to be fine. They just need to take it easy for a few days,” said Greg Pittman, public information officer for the sheriff’s department.
Just before 2 p.m. Jan. 19, Stogsdill and Bowling were responding to a report of a child being hit by a vehicle in the Brown County IGA parking lot.
Before they could get there, they were called off, Pittman said.
The officers — who are brothers — were westbound on State Road 46 East near Hesitation Point Bike and Backcountry and Parkview Road when they started to slow down. Stogsdill reached down to turn off his emergency lights and rear-ended Bowling’s police SUV, Pittman said.
The impact caused Bowling’s vehicle to careen down a hill into a wooded area on the south side of the road. Stogsdill’s police truck received heavy front-end damage. Neither was drivable.
Traffic on State Road 46 between Snyder Road and the state park was rerouted onto Old State Road 46 for more than 30 minutes during cleanup.
The child in the parking lot to whom the officers were responding received a minor injury to his lip and mouth.
Bessie M. Sumpter, Nashville, told the investigating officer, Nashville Police’s Michael Williams, that she was pulling out of a parking spot when she heard a “thud.”
She found Nashville resident Mary Knight laying on her back behind the vehicle. Knight had been walking with a 16-month-old child when they were struck by Sumpter’s Chevrolet Equinox.
Ambulance personnel checked out Knight and the child at the scene, but did not take them to the hospital, the accident report said.
No citations were issued.
Pittman said Stogsdill and Bowling will be able to use reserve officers’ vehicles until insurance claims are worked out.
