A Tuesday afternoon crash in Effingham sent two people to the hospital. The accident occurred at approximately 3:20pm on South Banker Street just south of the Fayette Avenue intersection when a vehicle driven by 92-year-old Effingham resident Melvin Higgs turned in front of and was struck by a vehicle driven by 46-year-old Effingham resident Timothy Koester. The impact caused Koester’s vehicle to leave the roadway, coming to a stop when it struck and damaged a retaining wall owned by First Baptist Church. Both drivers, as well as two passengers in Higgs’ vehicle, 87-year-old Mary Higgs and 83-year-old Hilda Shumaker, both of Effingham, sustained injuries in the crash. Melvin Higgs and Shumaker refused treatment, while Koester and Mary Higgs were transported by ambulance to St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital.
Melvin Higgs was ticketed for Failure to Yield.