Three dead after collision near Butler, Greenwood county line

Three people have died after a three-car crash on U.S. 54 east of Rosalia, emergency dispatchers said.

A dispatcher with the Kansas Highway Patrol said officers were dispatched to the crash, just to the west of the Butler and Greenwood county line, shortly before 1:30 p.m. Friday.

Kansas Highway Patrol Lt. C.J. Schreiber said an eastbound vehicle crossed into the westbound lanes of U.S. 54, striking a pickup head-on.

Three of the four occupants of the eastbound vehicle were killed in the crash. A fourth was transported with serious injuries to Susan B. Allen Memorial Hospital in El Dorado, Schreiber said.

The pickup’s driver, who was its sole occupant, also sustained serious injuries, and was transported to the El Dorado hospital, Schreiber said.

Both of the survivors were expected to be transported to Wichita hospitals.

The Kansas Highway Patrol was in the process of notifying family members of the deceased, Schreiber said. Names will not be released until after that, he said.

A third vehicle was struck by debris from the crash, “isolated to the windshield,” Schreiber. The driver was uninjured.

Schreiber said the cause of the crash is under investigation.

U.S. 54 was closed in both directions at the county line from the time of the crash until about 8:30 p.m., Schreiber said. Traffic was flowing as of 9:30 p.m., he said.

This story was originally published April 17, 2015 at 5:10 PM with the headline "Three dead after collision near Butler, Greenwood county line."