Hayrack ride overturns, killing 1 in western Illinois

NAUVOO, Ill. (AP) - A woman was killed and more than 20 other people were injured over the weekend when a hayrack side overturned in rural western Illinois, police said.

Troopers were called to the scene in Hancock County on Saturday night after between 20 to 25 people who had attended a family event went on a hayrack ride, said Capt. Jon Dively Jr. of Illinois State Police.

As a tractor was pulling the hayrack wagon, police said the driver lost control of the ride on an incline, causing both the tractor and wagon to slide down into a wooded ravine, WGEM-TV reported.

The Hancock County Coroner identified the woman who died in the accident as Amy Swinderman, 32, of Hamilton, Illinois.

A police crash report states that three adults and 16 children between the ages of 1 and 12 were on the wagon and all but two of them were taken to the hospital with injuries.

Dively said one of the children suffered significant injuries.

The tractor's driver, Wayne York, 41, of Nauvoo, was cited for failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

Dively said an Illinois State Police traffic reconstruction team that's investigating the incident found that the tractor was undersized for the ride.