A 41-year-old Royalton man has been airlifted to a St. Louis Hospital for treatment of injuries after his pickup truck hit a City of Centralia fire truck early Monday morning.
The crash occurred just after the fire department’s new pumper had left the station on South Poplar and was in front of the police station that shares the same building.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Department which is handling the crash due to a city of Centralia vehicle being involved said the pickup was driven by Dustan Threewitt. He was initially taken to SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Centralia before being airlifted to St. Louis. Fire officials say Threewitt was able to get out of his pickup on his own following the crash.
Firemen spotted the wrong way driver a few blocks away and after changing lanes to avoid a collision the wrong way driver moved into the same lane. At that point, the fire truck stopped and was hit by the pickup.
The crash totaled the pickup and firemen estimate there was $40,000 in front end damage to the pumper truck. It is out of service until repairs can be made.
The fire department was on the way to a lift assist at 12:39 Monday morning when the crash occurred.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Department is continuing its investigation and reports tickets are pending.
