Jordan Wilcox
Assistant Publisher
The Clare County Amish Community is grieving this week, as three were injured in another buggy crash.
According to multiple Facebook posts, Levi Troyer, his wife Naomi, and their 4-month-old daughter, Little Naomi, were traveling on Townline Lake Road towards Dodge City, when a car crashed into their buggy.
The force of the crash ejected Little Naomi from her seat, causing her to hit the pavement and fracture her skull. She was rushed to Covenant Hospital, along with her mother, who has a broken ankle. Both remain lodged there.
Mr. Troyer was sent to MyMichigan Clare Hospital with back injuries.
Commenters on the aforementioned Facebook posts expressed deep sadness and well wishes for the Troyer family, who are beloved in the community for their “Saturday Sales by the Gas Station.”
One commenter was also quick to point out that this tragedy comes shortly after one of the Troyer’s cousins lost his life in a similar buggy-truck accident.
Unfortunately, crashes like this have been on the rise recently. Data from the Michigan State Police (MSP) Traffic Crash Reporting System shows that from 2016–2023, there were 261 traffic crashes across Michigan involving the Amish, buggies, horses, and sulkies.
In their 30-second YouTube video, “Horsepower (Amish Community Safety),” the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning (OSHP) suggests that when driving near Amish buggies, drivers slow down, allow plenty of room, and don’t honk their horn. They also remind drivers to stay vigilant of their surroundings and only pass when legal.
Anyone who hits ANY AMISH no matter what they are driving or riding should AUTOMATICALLY get 15 YEARS MINIMUM in prison. It is just plain negligence if you hit any Amish.
I live in area buggy are growing monthly and many have been killed show some common sense and slow down driving is not a race to see who is frist to arrive we alone golf cart to drive are road so wake so we all arrive safe to where we are going
What about the Amish. They need to also be vigilant. They also need to watch out for vehicles and not turn in front of vehicles. They should have to follow the same rules that we do as vehicle drivers. Shouldn’t their children be in car seats and Shouldn’t they have to wear seat belts?
Use the brains that God gave you and realize your automobile out weighs that horse and buggy by thousands of pounds. Also think, your vehicle travels a heck of a lot faster than a horse and buggy. Keep in mind something can spook the horse and cause it to dart one way or another and even cause them to bolt. Before you say something to the effect that they should keep control of their horse think, can you predict when your going to have a flat tire that causes you to veer out of your lane? Have just a little respect. Slow down to 45 mph when going past, either way, and wait to go around when another vehicle is coming your way. You’re supposed to be at a 5 foot distance for bicycles how bout doing the same for horse and buggy. Or you could just keep driving like you don’t give a crap and hit and or maybe kill the occupants and live with that on your conscious. Obviously the choice is yours. Oh and I suppose you are one of the ignorant few that want the government to relieve us of our guns because guns kill. So do people driving their vehicle and hit a buggy with people inside.
Eunice that is profoundly ignorant thinking. The privilege of driving a vehicle makes the driver fully responsible for controlling that vehicle. It would not matter if it were a cyclist, walker, or any other situation. How about penalties for hitting any none vehicle increase to a point of concession AND every accident requires drug and alcohol testing with phone confiscation for time stamp. Enough is enough.