Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper hospitalized after being struck by driver on icy I-71

An Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper was hospitalized after being struck by a car while outside his vehicle during icy conditions in Ashland County.

According to a release from the OSHP, the incident happened Wednesday morning at 5:50 a.m. on Interstate 71 northbound near County Road 175 in Ashland Township. Troopers had been called earlier for a report of a single-vehicle crash on an icy bridge on I-71 near milepost 193. A Jeep was found just north of the County Road 175 bridge in the median.

The Ohio Department of Transportation was notified of icy roadways in the area.

Trooper Tanner R. Guinther was standing outside of his cruiser investigating the Jeep crash in the median when a northbound Toyota Tacoma, driven by a 37-year-old Carroll woman, lost control on the ice-covered bridge and struck Guinther’s patrol car.

The Tacoma continued into the median, where it struck both Guinther and the original crashed Jeep.

Guinther was transported to Ohio Health in Ashland with minor injuries. He was later treated and released. The drivers of the Tacoma and Jeep were not injured in the crash.

The crash remains under investigation.

OSHP troopers remind motorists to proceed with caution anytime they see flashing lights ahead and to reduce their speed on icy or snow-covered roadways.