In a recent opinion column in the Columbus Dispatch, Cory Anderson takes a critical eye to Ohio House Bill 30, which last June became law requiring flashing lights on animal-drawn vehicles in the state. In it, he raises some interesting points – including on whether the single flashing light actually increases safety – and on how the law came about. The resulting predictable conflict with the…
A month ago, two Amish children lost their lives when the pony pulling their cart apparently bolted in front of an oncoming car. Eleven-year-old Rachel Miller, and her brother, 7-year-old Samuel, perished in the accident. Their sister Hannah was thrown from the cart, but survived. West Michigan station WOOD TV8 has spoken with Hannah’s parents Eli and Fannie about how they’ve managed following this tragedy…
Two strange accidents occurred recently after buggy horses were startled on the road. First, a tragic happening where a motorcycle rider died in Wisconsin after being struck by a horse. From the LaCrosse Tribune: A La Farge woman died at the scene of a motorcycle crash after authorities say an Amish buggy crossed into the vehicle’s path Sunday in the town of Whitestown. According to…
A northern Indiana man will be secured behind bars for eight years following a December 2021 incident, in which he hit an Amish buggy with his Nissan and ran (“ran”, as in, drove off). As a result, people on area roads (both Amish & non-Amish) will travel a bit more safely now. The obvious reason for the uptick in safety is that this was the…
Very sad news from northern Michigan. Via 9and10news.com: Two children were killed and one other suffered serious injuries after an accident Monday morning involving a passenger vehicle and an Amish buggy, the Wexford County Sheriff’s Office said. The sheriff’s office said they received a call at 8:15 a.m. about a crash at East 16 Road and North 39 Road. According to a preliminary investigation, a…
I have to admit when I saw the headline of this story (“Driverless Amish buggy crashes in Watertown”), the first thing that came to mind were driverless cars. Had Amish in some under-the-radar settlement stealthily adopted battery-powered self-driving buggies when no one was looking? Some Amish absorb change faster than others…but that would be quite a leap. But of course, that’s not what this was….
A van rollover accident claimed the lives of four Amish individuals, three of them young children, in central Iowa on Friday. The group of Amish (more than one family) were on the way to Missouri to visit relatives. From kmch.com: The Iowa State Patrol says three children and one adult were killed when the passenger van they were riding in lost control on Highway 20….
This video – of a vehicle rear-ending an Amish buggy – is worth checking out. Why? It’s the first I’ve ever seen of a buggy actually being hit. And it comes from an unexpected place – a sheriff deputy’s body camera as he was driving his vehicle. The incident took place in late October in Chautauqua County, New York, home to four distinct Amish settlements (going…
The two sponsors of the new Ohio horse-drawn transport lighting law, state representatives Scott Wiggam and Darrell Kick, recently addressed the new stipulation that all horse-drawn transport have flashing lights affixed to the top of the vehicle: “The bottom line is, we believe fully that this will save lives,” Wiggam said. “The speed differential is just too great.” Kick agreed. “The objective is to reduce…
An unusual buggy accident happened last week in Missouri, involving an Amish woman and boy (via KTVO): ADAIR COUNTY, Mo. — A northeast Missouri woman and boy were injured Sunday evening in a terrifying accident. It was reported around 8 p.m. on Apache Way, about six miles southeast of Greentop. First responders told KTVO an Amish horse and buggy carrying a 28-year-old woman from Greentop…