Several People Injured After 4 Separate Crashes On Turner Turnpike

Several people were hurt after a series of crashes on the Turner Turnpike between Stroud and Bristow on Wednesday afternoon, Oklahoma Highway Patrol said.

Two paramedics and a turnpike employee are among the people recovering after they were hit by cars while trying to help, investigators said.

Troopers said the crashes were a chain reaction from the weather. They expect everyone involved to make a full recovery.

One of the crashes involved a car smashing into a Creek County Ambulance, injuring two paramedics trying to help someone else involved in a different wreck.

“He dove out of the way, was still struck by the vehicle,” said Kerry Harlin, a public information officer for Creek County Ambulance, referring to the first medic who was hit. “The other medic was inside treating. She has a concussion and was thrown inside the vehicle.”

Harlin wants drivers to remember to slow down and move over when emergency lights are flashing, as required by state law.

“It’s a daily obstacle that we have to worry about,” said Harlin.

Troopers said the first wreck happened near the Bristow exit when a man was driving too fast and crashed into the center median. They said the man got out but his car kept rolling.

Another driver tried to avoid it, but ended up running over the first driver, according to OHP.

This caused slowdowns, but troopers said other drivers were still going too fast.

They said a wreck between two semis and two cars is what prompted the paramedics to the scene.

At another scene just a few miles away, investigators said a turnpike employee was hit by another car while trying to help with the flow of traffic from the other crashes.

“We’re grateful that it wasn’t life threatening injuries,” said Trooper Eric Foster, Oklahoma Highway Patrol. “However, it doesn’t matter. People were seriously injured because of carelessness and driving a little too fast in that rain.”

Troopers said the fourth crash involved a jackknifed semi.

All of the Turner Turnpike lanes are now reopened after hours of being closed.