Highway patrol reports eight crash deaths during Christmas counting period
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Christmas weekend crashes on state highways claimed eight lives, two of them in Central Missouri, the Missouri State Highway Patrol reported Monday.
The deaths happened during the patrol's Christmas counting period, which began at 6 p.m. Thursday and ended at 11:59 p.m. Sunday. The 310 crashes troopers investigated represented a slight increase compared to last year, when troopers were sent to 307 crashes, the patrol said in a news release. Ten people were killed last year.
The patrol logged 92 injuries in crashes this year and 67 DWI arrests. No drownings or boating crashes were reported this year.
One death happened in Osage County and another in Camden County. Zachary Sutton, 32, of De Soto, Missouri, was killed when his vehicle crossed the center line and hit a pickup truck head-on Friday on Route A in Osage County. Sutton was pronounced dead at the scene.
Kenneth Mustain, 57, of Camdenton, died when his ATV went off the road Friday and overturned, throwing Mustain, near Hermit Holler in Camden County. Mustain was pronounced dead at University Hospital, the patrol said.
