A Nebraska State Patrol trooper whose cruiser was smashed by a vehicle in stormy conditions Friday night was released from the hospital Saturday, said a spokesman.
The officer had finished work on an accident near the Lincoln Airport and had just gotten back on the road around 10:30 p.m.
The trooper drove west on I-80 when “an SUV lost control, spun out and kind of T-boned him from behind,” spokesman Cody Thomas said. The driver side of the SUV crashed into the rear of the cruiser and pushed it into a concrete barrier.
The trooper was transported to Bryan West Hospital with non-life threatening injuries and released Saturday morning.
The Nebraska State Patrol tweeted pictures of the accident around 11:45 p.m., asking for prayers for the officer’s recovery.
A few minutes later, the patrol released another tweet thanking Lincoln police for their quick response to the scene.
“The other driver was not seriously injured and was ticketed for driving too fast for the conditions,” the tweet said.
Capt. Todd Kocian of the Lincoln Police Department said his officers were on the scene because they were close and ready to assist. But the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office ultimately conducted the investigation.
Thomas said this is the second time in a week that someone crashed into a state trooper. The other accident occurred in good weather conditions and was caused by a distracted driver who rear-ended a trooper’s cruiser.
“Winter certainly seems to bring more of these out,” Thomas said. “We just always encourage people to watch their speed, especially when conditions are not ideal.”