Sheriff's deputies respond to two accidents Monday

The Winneshiek County Sheriff's Office handled two traffic accidents on Monday.

At 2:20 p.m., 63-year-old Murrel Mathison of Mabel crossed over the center line on Locust Road.  A second driver, 59-year-old Kenneth Geerts of Oelwein, tried to avoid Mathison's vehicle, but it struck the mirror on Geerts' vehicle. Mathison then entered the ditch and kept driving until the vehicle became disabled on an embankment.

Mathison was taken to the hospital by ambulance.  She has been referred to the Iowa Department of Transportation for a driver's re-examination.  No tickets were issued.

Then at 9:00 p.m. on Highway 24 in Jackson Township, 48-year-old Dean Dietzenbach of Waucoma was traveling east on State Highway 24 and put his turn signal on indicating he was turning north onto County Road V64. Both Dietzenbach and a vehicle behind him driven by 16-year-old Troy Schmitt of Fort Atkinson slowed to a stop, yielding to a vehicle traveling west. However, a vehicle driven by 15-year-old Aubrey Hoffert of Fort Atkinson failed to stop.  She struck Schmitt 's vehicle, which then was pushed into Dietzenbach's vehicle.  The accident did a total of $8,500 in damages.  Hoffert was ticketed for failure to maintain control.  No ambulance transported was needed.