OWENSVILLE — A longtime supporter of Owensville High School athletics died Monday morning when a dual-axle dump truck traveling west on Highway 28 near Third Street veered off the road and crashed into his living room.

Don “Ernie” Fuchs would have turned 85 on Saturday, according to his son, Daren Fuchs, who was at the scene. His father and mother, Glenda, had been together in the living room of the family’s residence in the 300 block of Highway 28 when the dump truck slammed into a concrete porch on the east side of the two-story frame home and came to rest with the cab completely inside the residence where the Fuchs had been sitting. Fuch’s mother, who was seated across the room reportedly, suffered a head wound and was transported by family to an area hospital for treatment.

Firemen from Owensville arrived shortly after the 9:05 a.m. call of a vehicle into a building and began cutting away a portion of the front of the house in an attempt to gain access to the truck’s cab. The truck had left the roadway just west of the U.S. Post Office facility at 28 and Second, drove partially over a snow pile, sheered off a utility pole, then crossed the front drive of the former Regions Bank facility, sheering off protective steel posts filled with concrete which once guarded the ATM machine.

The truck reportedly launched across Third Street and traveled across the family’s yard before striking the house. City police and fire officials at the scene believe Fuchs died instantly.

Owensville Fire Chief Jeff Arnold called for assistance and personnel with the Franklin County Task Force 5 Technical Rescue units out of the Union and Sullivan fire departments responded to shore up and secure the interior of the home during the recovery operation.

The driver of the dump truck, which had door lettering for Brinker Farms Trucking in Washington, was trapped inside the cab for approximately 30 minutes before firemen were able to extricate him from the compartment which had been smashed down by the impact. He was transported to Mercy Washington with what were described by police as “minor to moderate” injuries.

By 11:38 a.m., firemen had recovered Fuch’s body from his living room. Arnold said his body was transported to the Crawford County morgue where an autopsy would be conducted.

A Major Crash Team unit from the Missouri State Highway Patrol arrived and was conducting a crash scene investigation using a drone. Commercial vehicle inspectors from the MSHP were also on the scene as well as personnel from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Some diesel fuel was reportedly  leaking from the truck’s fuel tanks inside the residence but an officer with the Gerald-Rosebud Fire Protection District said it had been contained.

Once the MSHP reconstruction was completed, 4J’s Towing out of Linn pulled the truck out of the residence using a cable stretched across the yard from Third Street. The main floor remained solid, however, the ceiling and second-story had extensive sagging damage reported.

Firemen, city police and sheriff’s deputies were on the scene until 1:45 p.m. Jan. 28.

Also assisting Owensville firemen were units from the Gerald-Rosebud, Cuba, Union, St. Clair and Sullivan fire protection districts, the city of Rolla Fire Department, Task Force 5, Arch 6 helicopter ambulance, and ambulance personnel from Owensville, Gerald, and Osage County. Walmart staff brought bottled water and food to the scene for the rescue personnel.

Fuchs was honored in February 2024 at a Dutchmen basketball game for 48 years of service as treasurer for the school’s athletic booster club. Fuchs also served as a longtime scoreboard and clock operator for Owensville High School basketball and football games. He was also a longtime member of the Owensville Park Board.