HARRODSBURG — A prominent Mercer County farmer was killed Friday night when his tractor was struck by another vehicle on U.S. 127.
John Van Landrum, 52, was southbound on his tractor on U.S. 127 near the Stone Oak subdivision at about 9:15 p.m. when another vehicle hit him from the rear, said Mercer County Deputy Coroner Chuck Bugg.
The tractor rolled over on top of Landrum but he was able to climb out from underneath it, Bugg said. A helicopter landed nearby to transport him to the University of Kentucky Chandler Medical Center in Lexington, but Landrum suffered a heart attack while waiting in an ambulance. Emergency medical personnel then rushed him to Haggin¿Memorial Hospital in Harrodsburg, but he died there about 10 p.m., Bugg said.
Harrodsburg police initially issued a press release confirming that a man had died in a two-vehicle crash, but did not identify the victim or the driver of the other vehicle, stating the collision was still under investigation.
