Rick A. Hamby, 65, Caulfield, a longtime radio historian known to many locally as “Cowboy Rick,” suffered serious injuries in a head-on collision at 10:08 a.m. Sunday on West U.S. 160, 3 miles west of West Plains in Howell County, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Tpr. L.C. Pruiett with Troop G of the patrol, Willow Springs, reported a westbound 2001 Dodge 3500 driven by Justin G. Turner, 42, West Plains, crossed the center line and struck Hamby’s eastbound 2005 Dodge 2500.
Hamby was not wearing a seat belt and was taken by South Howell County Ambulance to Mercy Hospital in Springfield for treatment, the report shows. It was not known if Turner was wearing a seat belt when the vehicles collided, but he was flown by Survival Flight to Mercy Hospital for treatment of serious injuries, according to Pruiett.
Hamby, known for his "Just for Kids Roundup" and "Great Moments in American History" programs on KKDY 102.5, is also known for his Journey Stagecoach travels from Missouri to states in the Western U.S. He and his stagecoach crew had recently completed this year’s excursion, “Dust in the Wind,” traveling along the Smoky Hill Trail straddling the Kansas-Colorado border to deliver letters from youth and elders in the West Plains community to residents in that area.
Pruiett was assisted at the scene by Cpl. J.D. Wheeler and Tpr. A.K. Falterman.
