THORNTON, IOWA – A Cerro Gordo county couple out tooling around in their Dodge pickup Monday night visited a ditch after a tire blew out and the man in the passenger seat yanked the steering wheel, police say.
On April 21, 2025, at 6:18 PM, The Cerro Gordo County Sheriffs Office responded to a single vehicle accident at the intersection of Grouse Avenue and 100th Street. The driver, 33-year-old Jessica Hinders of Meservey, Iowa, and her passenger, 42-year-old Charles Smith from Meservey, Iowa, were traveling northbound on Grouse Avenue in a blue 1998 Dodge RAM 1500 when a rear tire was punctured and caused the vehicle to lose control. Smith grabbed the wheel in order to try and stop the vehicle from swerving but the vehicle entered the east side ditch.
After the accident, both occupants denied medical attention. Hinders was unharmed but Smith suffered minor injuries from broken glass.
The Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Iowa State Patrol.