Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
SIDNEY - State Trooper Jason Beal is in critical condition in a Fort Wayne hospital after being struck by a car Wednesday night near the intersection of Ind. 14 and CR 700E in southeastern Kosciusko County.
Beal, 24, of Silver Lake, was helping a wrecker operator pull a vehicle out of a ditch about 11:50 p.m. when a car slid out of control on the icy roadway, striking the wrecker and Beal.
Beal was reportedly thrown 50 feet into the air upon impact. He suffered head injuries and severe internal injuries, according to a police report. Beal underwent surgery this morning at Lutheran Hospital, where he was listed in critical and unstable condition at press time.
The driver of the car, Teresa Cooper, 22, North Manchester, was not injured.
After the accident occurred, the wrecker driver used Beal's police radio to call for help.
Beal, originally from Shelbyville, is a one-year veteran of the Indiana State Police stationed at the Bremen Post and assigned to Kosciusko County.
