Douglas County emergency crews respond Thursday to two accidents

Douglas County emergency crews were kept busy Thursday afternoon responding to two separate accidents within about an hour of one another.

The first, an accident between a car and a pedestrian, happened about 4:55 p.m. near the intersection of U.S. Highway 56 and First Street in Baldwin City.

Baldwin City Police Cpl. Mike Underwood said a juvenile male was struck by a car as he tried to cross Highway 56.

Underwood said because of the boy’s injuries, an emergency helicopter was dispatched and the boy was flown to Kansas University Hospital in Kansas City, Kan.

Baldwin City police had not released the boy’s name as of Thursday evening.

The second serious accident happened just before 5:45 p.m. at the intersection of North 851 Diagonal and East 450 roads near the town of Clinton on the west side of Clinton Lake.

Douglas County Undersheriff Steve Hornberger said a car and a pickup truck collided, possibly head-on.

The driver of the car was trapped in the vehicle. Once freed, he was flown by air ambulance to KU Hospital.

Hornberger said two people in the pickup truck were taken by ambulance to Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

Deputies from the sheriff’s department were on the scene late into the evening, investigating that crash.