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Hardin County man in custody after hit and run on Bluegrass Parkway

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A Hardin County man is in custody after he allegedly struck two men changing a tire on the Bluegrass Parkway, killing one, and fled the scene.

Jason T. Hamilton of Rineyville faces multiple charges including Vehicular Homicide When Under the Influence of Alcohol, Leaving the Scene of an Accident, and Fourth Degree Assault following the incident Friday.

According to Kentucky State Police Post Four, at around 11 p.m. on February 21 troopers responded to a call from Nelson County Dispatch requesting the KSP investigate after a pedestrian was struck near the 13-mile marker on the Bluegrass Parkway.

The KSP says the preliminary investigation indicates that Nelson Pacheco Jr. of Cicero, Illinois, was changing a tire on a vehicle in the westbound emergency lane of the parkway. 20-year-old Amari Mays-Clark of Frankfort was standing near the rear driver’s side bumper when a vehicle driven by Hamilton crossed the fog line and struck Mays-Clark and Pacheco. The vehicle then continued without stopping.

Mays-Clark was declared dead at the scene by the Nelson County Coroner’s Office. Pacheco was transported to Baptist Health Hardin with non-life-threatening injuries.

The KSP says Hamilton turned himself into police several hours after the incident. He was lodged in the Nelson County Detention Center, where he is being held on a $500,000 cash bond.

The accident closed the westbound lanes of the Bluegrass Parkway for several hours during accident reconstruction. The KSP’s investigation remains ongoing.

Suspect in custody after multiple calls of gunfire in Radcliff

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A suspect is in custody after multiple shooting incidents occurred in Radcliff.

Dante T. Patterson faces charges of Attempted Murder, Wanton Endangerment, Assault, Leaving the Scene of an Accident, and Possession of a Handgun by a Convicted Felon following his arrest Saturday.

According to a post on the City of Radcliff Government Facebook page, officers with the Radcliff Police Department responded to Braxton Court for a call of reported gunfire. That call was followed by another call.

“We received a call of a shooting in the south part of the city,” said Detective Kenneth Mattingly with the RPD. “Officers responded and obtained a vehicle description, and shortly after they cleared from that scene we received a call of another shooting in another part of town involving the same vehicle.”

Witnesses at the scene of the second shooting report also gave officers a vehicle description, and while searching for the suspect vehicle reports of additional shootings were made to the RPD.

“Ultimately, the driver was located, and he was placed under arrest and has been charged with a few offenses right now, but there are multiple other charges that are coming, and multiple scenes that we are still in the process of processing,” Mattingly said.

Mattingly says one person was injured in the shootings. The victim was transported by helicopter to the University of Louisville Hospital, where they still were as of Saturday evening. Patterson’s jail citation states that while fleeing from a shooting scene he was “involved in a serious injury accident.” Patterson allegedly struck an unoccupied vehicle that was pushed into an occupied vehicle. A victim in the occupied vehicle was transported to Baptist Health Hardin by Hardin County EMS for treatment of neck and back injuries.

Patterson was lodged in the Hardin County Detention Center, where he is being held on a $500,000 cash bond. He is scheduled to appear for video arraignment in Hardin District Court Monday.

(Photo Credit: Hardin County Detention Center)

Three saved after attempting to cross floodwaters in Elizabethtown

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Emergency responders Thursday night made a rescue in Elizabethtown.

“At around 10:30 p.m. Thursday evening, we along with the Elizabethtown Fire Department and Hardin County EMS responded to the report of a disabled vehicle in the floodwater on Hawkins Drive,” said Elizabethtown Police Department Public Information Officer Chris Denham. “When our officers arrived, we determined a vehicle occupied by two adults and a juvenile drove around the high water barrier and into the flood water which was several feet deep, causing their vehicle to become disabled. Using water rescue techniques, the fire department assisted the occupants from the vehicle without further incident.”

Denham said given the frigid temperatures the situation could have been much worse without the quick efforts of emergency responders.

“The bottom line is: never drive through high water,” Denham said. “It’s a good way to lose your life, not to mention the unnecessary risk first responders are exposed to when performing a rescue.”

As it is said: “turn around, don’t drown.”

More winter weather causes more chaos Thursday

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Light snowfall overnight and frigid temperatures led to slick conditions across the area Thursday morning.

State officials say the Kentucky State Police has responded to 175 stranded motorist calls, 149 non-injury crashes, and 18 injury crashes over the course of the recent winter weather. Slick conditions in Hardin County led to several slide-offs Thursday morning, including an incident that shut down Hawkins Drive for several hours.

“At Interstate 65 Northbound, just north of Exit 91, two semis split off I-65 and came to final rest on Hawkins Drive after striking a house,” said Elizabethtown Police Department Public Information Officer Chris Denham. “Fortunately, no one was seriously injured in that collision.”

During his severe weather briefing Thursday, Governor Andy Beshear said precipitation is largely out of the forecast for the next several days, although temperatures will remain dangerously low until warmer temperatures are seen on Sunday. Beshear said as conditions have changed, the state is shifting its response.

“We’ll be moving from our emergency search and rescue phase to what we call the stabilization phase,” Beshear said. “We’ll be finishing up most all of our searches and wellness checks. We’ll be winding down our USAR and swift water boat teams and moving more into providing services for our families that have been harmed.”

As of Thursday morning, 653 customers across Kentucky remain without power, down from a peak of more than 43,000. About 6,500 customers remain without water, and more than 45,000 are under boil water advisories.

Kentuckians looking to support those in need may contribute to the Team Kentucky Storm Relief Fund. Another way to show support is by donating blood. Visit www.redcrossblood.org for more information and to find donation drives near you.

Closure of U.S. 62 bridge over Cedar Creek delayed

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UPDATE: KYTC District Four says due subcontractor scheduling issues the start of the project has been delayed to Monday, March 3.

A bridge along U.S. 62 in Nelson County will be closed for a superstructure project set to begin Monday.

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District Four says the U.S. 62 bridge over Cedar Creek will be fully closed with work to be completed within 90 days. The bridge is located about 9.4 miles east of the Hardin-Nelson county line.

“The bridge over Cedar Creek is one of those structures that doesn’t look like it’s all that complicated because it’s relatively short and you can’t really see the superstructures as you drive across it, but it’s like any other bridge,” said KYTC District Four Public Information Officer Chris Jessie. “It has all those components, and what you can’t see below the bridge deck is what we’re working on replacing there, and crews have 90 days to get that work done and get the road reopened here as we head through spring.”

Galusha Contracting LLC was awarded the contract for the bridge project last November with a bid of about $525,000. A signed detour is posted along state routes on both sides of the bridge.

Follow KYTC District Four on social media for any project updates.