Etsey Pringle Killed in 18-Wheeler Accident on US-42 in Waynesville, OH
Waynesville, OH — November 22, 2022, 63-year-old Etsey Pringle died when his tractor collided with a semi-truck on U.S. Route 42 in Warren County.
Authorities say the incident happened just before 3:00 p.m. along US-42. Preliminary investigation suggests Pringle's farm tractor and a commercial 18-wheeler were both southbound on the highway when the truck rear-ended the tractor for unknown reasons. After the impact the truck veered through the median and across the northbound lanes before overturning in a ditch.
Pringle was ejected from his tractor during the collision and suffered fatal injuries. The truck driver was extricated from the big rig and airlifted to a hospital for treatment of life-threatening injuries.
The investigation is ongoing. No further information is available at this time.
Commentary on Etsey Pringle Accident on US-42 in Waynesville
One thing I often see after farming equipment crashes like this is people arguing about whether tractors and the like should really be on the highway at all. Generally speaking, in these rural areas it's quite common for them to use the roads, and they have every right to be there as long as they're marked and visible.
I don't want to get lost in the weeds about that, though, so let's just look at the basic preliminary details of the crash: An 18-wheeler seems to have crashed into a farm tractor in the middle of the afternoon on a seemingly flat stretch of road with few twists or turns. Barring something highly unusual there are few excuses for that.
Truck drivers are expected to be reasonably prudent professionals. Failing to see a large piece of farm equipment ahead doesn't strike me as a trucker doing everything in their power to avoid a collision, which may mean that further investigation will find that driver was doing something they shouldn't have been. I mean no offense against the badly-injured driver in this accident, but if some kind of carelessness was responsible for the loss of the other man's life then he and his employer should answer for that.
