DARLINGTON - Lafayette County Sheriff Reg M. Gill said two Darlington siblings were involved and one is dead following an overnight crash when their buggy was hit from behind by a semi.

On Monday, June 19, 2023, at 3:09 a.m., the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Office Communication Center was notified of a Semi truck/trailer vs buggy crash on Wis. 81, just east of Burke Road, in Darlington Township. Lafayette County Deputies, Darlington Police Department, Lafayette County EMS and Darlington Fire Department were all dispatched.

The investigation of the crash revealed that an Amish open-style buggy, pulled by a single horse and occupied by Samuel King (30) and Fannie S. King (19), siblings, both of rural Darlington, was traveling eastbound on Wis. 81. The buggy was struck from behind by a 2002 Kenworth semi-truck/trailer, also traveling eastbound and driven by Pavel Ivanovich Gritskan, (39) of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma.

Both occupants of the buggy were ejected, suffering significant injuries. 

Fannie King was pronounced dead at the scene, and Samuel King was transported by ambulance to Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County, before being flown to University Hospital in Madison by UW Medflight.

The driver of the tractor / trailer, Pavel Gritskan, was uninjured.

The horse pulling the buggy was killed as a result of the crash. The buggy was demolished and the semi sustained moderate damage.

The Lafayette County Sheriff’s Office has requested the assistance of the Wisconsin State Patrol Traffic Crash Reconstruction Team, as well as a State Patrol Inspector.

Wis. 81 is closed and detoured and will remain so for a several more hours during the ongoing investigation.

The Lafayette County Sheriff’s Office was assisted on scene by the Darlington Police Department, Darlington Fire Department, Lafayette County EMS, Lafayette County Highway Department and Wisconsin State Patrol.  

The investigation of the crash is ongoing with the assistance of the Wisconsin State Patrol Reconstruction Team.