BLOOMINGDALE TWP. – Van Buren County Sheriff Daniel Abbott reported that Van Buren County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched Friday, Aug. 8, at 7:45 p.m. to the 45000 block of County Road 388 for a report that an SUV had crashed into an Amish buggy. Upon arrival, deputies located the crashed buggy and found there were six occupants who had been in the buggy.
Sheriff Abbott said five of the occupants had obvious injuries and deputies began life saving measures on the subject with the most serious injuries. Multiple ambulances arrived on scene and began treating and transporting the injured subjects. All six subjects were transported to area hospitals, four of which had serious injuries and one with critical injuries.
The driver of the SUV remained on scene and was cooperative with deputies during the investigation.
Sheriff Abbott said the initial investigation showed that the buggy was westbound on CR 388 when it was hit from behind by the SUV. It appeared that speed and alcohol were both factors in the crash.
The driver of the SUV was arrested for operating while intoxicated causing serious in-jury and transported to the Van Buren County Jail, Paw Paw.
County Road 388 was closed for four hours while the crash was investigated. The in-vestigation is ongoing.
Deputies were assisted on scene by Bloomingdale and Columbia fire departments, LIFE EMS, and Van Buren Emergency Medical Services (VBEMS).
Thursday, August 14, 2025
