Kentucky Lawmaker Dies After Riding Lawnmower into Empty Pool

Republican Kentucky state Senator Johnnie Turner has died at the age of 76.

Accordingly ABC NewsThe deputy died when he fell into an empty pool while riding a lawn mower. The incident occurred on September 15, authorities confirmed. Associated Press That Turner drove into the deep end of the pool with his lawnmower.

At that time, the senator was taken to a local hospital before being transported to UT Medical Center.

Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers announced in a press release on Wednesday, October 23 that Turner died following the accident.

“We are saddened to share the news that Senator Johnnie Turner passed away Tuesday evening after a difficult battle with the injuries he sustained in his recent accident,” the statement said. CONNECTION NKY.

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“Over the past weeks, her extraordinary determination and strength have filled the Turner family and all of us with optimism and made this loss even harder to bear,” he added.

Stivers, 62, said he would miss his friend, adding that his “heart breaks for his wife, Maritza, and their children.”

PEOPLE reached out to Stivers for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

“This loss is deeply personal to me because I knew Johnnie long before our paths crossed in public office,” he said.

“Johnnie spent his life supporting others, whether through his service in the U.S. Army, as a member of the State House of Representatives and State Senate, or through his private practice as an attorney,” Stivers continued. “His unwavering commitment to the people of Eastern Kentucky—his constituents, his brothers and sisters in Christ whom he affectionately called ‘his people’—was at the center of everything he did.”

Accordingly Sky NewsTurner served in the U.S. military and in the Kentucky House of Representatives. He later became a state senator in 2020 and worked in the legal profession.