VERSAILLES — Indiana State Police said an Elizabethtown man died in an accident at 4 p.m. Saturday on State Road 129, south of Versailles.
The initial investigation by Master Trooper Ben Bastin indicated that a blue 2006 Ford F-350, being driven by Rebecca R. Ashcraft, 68, Vevay, was traveling northbound on State Road 129 near Benham Road in Ripley County.
For an unknown reason, Ashcraft’s vehicle crossed the centerline into the path of a southbound silver 2015 Ford Escape, being driven by Lenord R. Sheldon Jr., 66, Elizabethtown, state police said. The vehicles collided head-on in the southbound lanes of State Road 129.
As a result of the collision, Sheldon sustained fatal injuries, state police said. He was pronounced deceased at the scene by the Ripley County Coroner’s Office.
Lenord Sheldon’s wife, Beth A. Sheldon, 59, who was a passenger in his vehicle, sustained serious injuries. She was transported by medical helicopter to University of Cincinnati Hospital for further treatment. Ashcraft was transported to Margaret Mary Hospital in Batesville, Indiana where she was treated for minor injuries.
Toxicology results are pending at this time, state police said.
Bartholomew County officials said Sheldon had worked more than 40 years in the county surveyor’s office and was well-respected by other county employees. County Highway Supervisor Danny Hollander said Sheldon’s work was alway immaculate and precise, which is what is needed for that position.
