9-Week-Old Amish Baby Seriously Injured After Car Rear-Ends Family’s Buggy (Ohio)
A nine-week-old girl was seriously hurt yesterday (Friday) morning when her family’s buggy was rear-ended on a state highway in Ashland County, Ohio. The reporting describes what sounds like a serious wreck: “The impact tore the buggy apart, scattering pieces along about 100 feet of roadway and shoulder.”
The baby was one of four people in the buggy; she has been hospitalized. Ashland County Pictures reports:
ASHLAND COUNTY, Ohio — A 9-week-old girl suffered serious injuries Friday morning after a car struck the back of a horse-drawn buggy on State Route 302 near the Ashland-Wayne county line, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
The crash occurred at about 8:01 a.m. Both vehicles were traveling east when a 2012 Honda Civic driven by Dalton Byers, 33, of Sullivan, struck the buggy from behind. The impact tore the buggy apart, scattering pieces along about 100 feet of roadway and shoulder.
The three other occupants were injured and treated as well, though their lives do not appear to be in danger:
Four people were riding in the buggy. The driver was Jacob Gingerich, 38, of West Salem. His wife, 39, an 11-year-old boy and the infant were passengers.
New Pittsburg EMS transported the mother and infant to Wooster Community Hospital. The infant was later transferred to Akron Children’s Hospital. The other three buggy occupants were treated for injuries the Patrol described as non-life-threatening. The horse sustained minor injuries.
I would assume the baby is the daughter of Gingerich and his wife. Keep this baby in your prayers as she took the worst of this crash.
According to the report, no citation had been issued as of Friday. Investigators do not suspect drugs or alcohol played a part. The crash remains under investigation.
Ashland County is home to several Amish settlements. They include the sizeable Ashland-area settlement and a portion of the Lodi/Homerville community, shared with neighboring counties. By what I can see in the photos – and their address of West Salem – this looks like a family from the Lodi community, a Swartzentruber group.
Earlier Ashland County Buggy Crashes
Amish in the county have been victims of buggy accidents on several recent occasions. In February, a car hit a buggy on U.S. 42 and ejected a four-month-old and the child’s parents. In July 2025, a small child was flown to Akron Children’s Hospital after a pickup struck a buggy on Ohio 96. Ashland County Pictures has also documented the damage a car can do to a buggy in earlier crashes in the county.
No update on the infant’s condition has been released. Ashland County Pictures has many more images from the crash scene available at the link above.
