The Hanging Rock Police Department is praying for one of its own after Patrolman Christopher V. Steed was seriously injured in a car accident Sunday evening.

Steed, 29, of Franklin Furnace was going to work traveling eastbound on County Road 1 at 7:02 p.m. Sunday when he lost control of his black 1991 Ford Mustang. Steed left the right side of the road and collided with the Holiday Point Marina sign, said Lt. John Allard of the Ohio State Highway Patrol's Portsmouth Post.

"He was unconscious when they found him," Allard said. "The accident is still under investigation as to why he went off the road."

Steed, who has been a member of the police department for six or seven months, suffered head and shoulder injuries as well as a punctured lung and possible broken ribs, according to Hanging Rock Police Chief Robert Dillon.

After being transported by ambulance to King's Daughters Medical Center, Steed was then flown by Life Flight to St. Mary's Medical Center in Huntington, W.Va. The officer was originally placed in critical condition, but was considered stable and downgraded to serious condition Monday, Dillon said.

Dillon said everyone is praying for Steed and his family and officers will continue to support them.

"I was at the hospital (Sunday) night," chief Dillon said. "I plan on going back as soon as I get off work (Monday)."