A Parkton woman died Saturday after the all-terrain vehicle she was riding on struck a ditch in a bean field.

Michelle Lee Thrasher, 33, of the 300 block of Southern Comfort Drive, was on the back of an ATV driven by Reuben Pate, 45, of the same address, said Sgt. Scottie Chavis of the state Highway Patrol.

They were following another ATV through the field, about 2.2 miles outside Parkton, when they hit a ditch about 6 feet deep at 1:22 a.m., Chavis said.

“It looked as if they somewhat jumped the ditch but didn’t make it to the other side,” he said.

Pate was injured with what appeared to be a punctured lung and broken ribs, Chavis said. He was in stable condition about 9:30 p.m. Saturday, a nursing supervisor said.

The driver of the second ATV, whose identity was not available, took Pate and Thrasher to a pay telephone about a mile away at the intersection of U.S. 301 and Parkton Tobemory Road and called 911. Thrasher was dead when emergency workers arrived, Chavis said.

The accident is under investigation.