Two women perish in Spencer County crash

Two Perry County woman died when the car they were in pulled in front of a tractor-trailer Monday night.

According to Indiana State Police, Violet E. Patterson, 67, Cannelton, was eastbound on State Road 70, just east of Chrisney, in a 2003 Toyota Echo at about 10:16 p.m. EDT. When Patterson reached the intersection with U.S. 231 according to investigators, she crossed the southbound lanes but did not stop in the paved section of median before proceeding across the northbound lanes into the path of a 2001 Kenworth truck hauling a 38,000 pound coil of steel.

The driver, Billy Ray Widener, 37, Marion, NC, did not have time to react or attempt to avoid striking Patterson’s Toyota. The crash pushed the Toyota north through the intersection and over posted highway signs.

Patterson and her passenger, Velma L. Bolin, Cannelton, were both pronounced dead at the scene by the Spencer County Coroner. Widener was transported to Owensboro Health in Owensboro, Kentucky for evaluation.

The northbound lanes of US 231 were closed for two and a half hours while State Police investigated the crash.

The Indiana State Police were assisted by the Spencer County Sheriff’s Department, Chrisney and Grandview Fire Departments, and the Spencer County Coroner’s Office.