PAWHUSKA, Okla. (AP) — The husband and nephew of cookbook author Ree Drummond, also known as "The Pioneer Woman,” were involved in a head-on collision that left the nephew in critical condition, authorities said.
Each of the men was driving a fire truck when the vehicles collided Wednesday, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said. Troopers said high winds on the gravel road caused reduced visibility at the time.
The pair was responding to a fire spreading toward the Drummond family ranch in Pawhuska, about 40 miles (65 kilometers) northwest of Tulsa.
Drummond’s husband, Ladd Drummond, 52, initially refused medical treatment at the scene but was later life-flighted by helicopter, according to emergency management officials.
The nephew, Caleb Drummond, 21, was taken to a Tulsa hospital in critical condition with head, arm, leg, and internal injuries, according to state troopers.
“Caleb and Ladd are in the hospital, but we think they will both be okay,” Ree Drummond wrote in a Facebook post. “As a family we are giving thanks today, knowing things could have been much worse.”
Drummond is known for her website “The Pioneer Woman” and her Food Network cooking show of the same name.