Two Injured In Accident North of Stanton

UPDATED: Oct. 27, 2023 at 12:05 p.m. 
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Two people were injured, including a Stanton teenager, in an accident north of Stanton this morning near the intersection of 844 Road and 565 Ave, according to Stanton County Sheriff Mike Unger.

The injuries were originally believed to be non-life threatening. Both were transported to Faith Regional in Norfolk. The teen has since been airlifted to Omaha for treatment of his injuries.

According to Sheriff's Office, just before 8 a.m. Friday, a two-vehicle injury accident at the intersection of 844th and Ridge Road and about nine miles north of Stanton. The accident occurred when an eastbound SUV driven by Jeffrey Kollath, 42, of rural Stanton turned north onto Ridge Road (565th Ave) and was struck by a southbound car on Ridge Road driven by a 17-year-old male.

Both vehicles left the roadway and came to rest on their tops in the northeast ditch. Kollath was able to exit his vehicle, however the teen in the second vehicle was trapped inside his wreckage and was removed by members of the sheriff’s office. Both the teen and Kollath were transported to FRHS by Stanton and Hoskins/Woodland Park rescue units.

Unger said seatbelts were not in use in the teen's vehicle and airbags deployed in both vehicles. Both vehicles were total losses and speed may have been a contributing factor on the gravel roads. Stanton County Emergency Management assisted the Sheriff’s office at the scene.