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Columbia, MO (August 31, 2026) – A 17-year-old Osceola girl and a 58-year-old St. Louis man were injured Saturday night, August 29, after she lost consciousness or fell asleep behind the wheel and rear-ended his car on southbound US-63 near Peabody Road, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The crash happened around 11 p.m.
Both drivers were wearing seat belts. The girl suffered minor injuries and was taken by Boone County Ambulance to University Hospital. The man suffered moderate injuries and was also taken to University Hospital.
Both vehicles were towed from the scene. We hope both have a full recovery.
Why May Drivers Lose Consciousness Unexpectedly or Fall Asleep?
Fatigue can build gradually over the course of a drive, and a driver isn’t always aware of how close they are to falling asleep until it actually happens. This is especially true during monotonous stretches of highway driving, where fewer stops or turns are needed to keep a driver actively engaged.
Losing consciousness briefly, sometimes called microsleep, can happen even to someone who doesn’t consider themselves overly tired, particularly during nighttime hours when the body’s natural rhythms favor sleep. These episodes can last just a few seconds but are enough time for a vehicle to drift into another lane or fail to slow for traffic ahead.
Investigators typically ask drivers directly about fatigue and review the timeline leading up to a crash to understand whether drowsiness played a role. This kind of self-reported information, as happened here, often becomes an important part of establishing what led to a crash like this one.
