Several injuries were reported by the Missouri State Highway Patrol in two serious crashes in Howard County on Tuesday and Wednesday of last week.

The first occurred at 4:22 p.m. on Tuesday, April 16, on Highway 5 just north of New Franklin. According to the patrol, a 2003 Lexus RX300 SUV driven by Shelby L. Thompson, 33, Columbia, was southbound when it crossed the center line and struck a 2012 GMC Sierra pickup truck head-on. The truck, driven by Kristopher W. Elliott, 28, Fayette, was northbound.

The truck traveled off the right side of the road and overturned, ejecting Elliott. He was later transported by helicopter to University Hospital in Columbia in serious condition.

Ambulances from Howard and Cooper counties were on scene. Hayley R. McCutcheon, 24, Fayette, and Michael J. Walters, 20, Fayette, along with a two-and-a-half-month-old infant in a car seat, all passengers inside the truck, were taken to University hospital. McCutcheon was listed in serious condition. The child was not listed on the patrol’s website but was confirmed to be in the truck by the Howard County Sheriff’s Department.

Thompson, who refused medical treatment at the scene, was arrested for suspicion of driving while intoxicated. As of Tuesday morning, no charges had been filed.

Both vehicles were totaled and towed from the scene. None of the occupants in either vehicle were wearing seatbelts, according to the patrol.

The second accident occurred at 11:16 a.m. on Wednesday, April 17. According to the patrol’s report, a 2002 Dodge Dakota driven by Leroy B. McKee, 83, Fayette, was northbound on State Route DD north of Fayette when the SUV traveled off the right side of the roadway, struck two mailboxes, a guy wire from a utility pole, and a tree before overturning.

The crash took out five poles with electric lines, causing 156 customers to be without power for most of the day, according to Howard Electric Cooperative.

Both Howard and Cooper County Ambulance Services responded to the crash. McKee and a passenger, Juanita S. Brown, 61, Fayette, were taken to University Hospital in Columbia with serious injuries. Neither was wearing a seatbelt, according to the patrol.

Another passenger, Michelle L. Smith, from Marshall, Mo., whose age was not listed, was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. According to the report, she was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.

The Dodge Dakota sustained extensive damage and was towed from the scene.