A Monday morning crash on U.S. 63 near the intersection of Alton Road in Thayer resulted in fatal injuries for an Osage County man, and serious injuries to two children, Thayer police reported.
In a statement published to social media on Wednesday morning, police identified the deceased as driver Adam Berhorst, 43, Westphalia. Noting that police arrived at the scene at 6:25 a.m. Monday, officers said Berhorst’s vehicle, a 2016 GMC Yukon, had traveled off the southbound shoulder of the road, down an embankment and into a tree. Passengers included a woman and three children; two of the children, ages 9 and 4, suffered serious injuries, police reported, and the third, 11 years old, had no apparent injuries. Missouri state law protects the identities of minor children; as a result their names are not publicized.
The woman, Susan Berhorst, 35, also of Westphalia, reportedly suffered minor injuries. All four passengers were taken by Oregon County Ambulance to Ozarks Healthcare in West Plains for treatment police reported; in a statement issued Tuesday, police noted that two of the children were flown by helicopter from Ozarks Healthcare to Children’s Hospital. It was not specified which Children’s Hospital they were taken to. There are facilities with that name in Springfield, St. Louis, and Jonesboro and Little Rock in Arkansas.
