Eau Claire County (WQOW) - Five people are injured after a mug bog racer leaves the tracks and hits several bystanders at Pioneer Mud Bog Days. The Eau Claire County Sheriff's Department says it happened around 12:40 Saturday afternoon at Pioneer Park. Authorities say a mud bog racer was racing through the mud bog race, and lost control of the vehicle. They went over the railing and into a crowd of bystanders, watching the race.
"It sounded like it was bouncing up and down, and we looked over and we saw the front end of the truck lift up, and it went over the guardrail. We saw a tent get pushed out of the way, and then we saw people running kind of out of the way," says Steven Mueller, a mud bog racer.
That vehicle ended up on top of several bystanders, injuring them.
"A mud bogger, or racer, lost control and came up over the guardrail into the crowd. Two people were pinned underneath. Fire and EMS were able, along with bystanders, to pull the vehicle off the victims there," says Det. Allen Myren, with the Eau Claire County Sheriff's Dept.
Three adults and one child were transported to the hospital, one with a broken ankle. Another person was driven to the hospital by a family member. We spoke with an event coordinator, who says a similar accident happened a few years ago, but these kinds of incidents are rare.
It's very very rare and it's a very very freak accident. Very very freak accident that doesn't happen very often, hardly any time at all," says Daryl Dehnke, an event organizer. "We had a similar lost control of a vehicle here about four or five years ago that also injured some people there at that time too."
All of the patients are expected to be released from the hospital Saturday night.
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Press Release from the Eau Claire County Sheriff's Department: At 12:40 P.M. a vehicle involved in the Pioneer Days Mud Bog left the course and struck several spectators. Eau Claire County Sheriff's Office deputies and Township Fire Personnel were already on scene for the event. Five victims were transported to the hospital. Four were transported by ambulance. A fifth was transported by a family member. The victims were:
Male 59 years of age
Male 42 years of age
Male 28 years of age
Male 6 years of age
Female 22 years of age
The names and extent of injuries are not available at this time.
