MOULTRIE, Ga. — A Colquitt County farm worker was in fair condition Thursday at a Florida hospital after he was thrown from a tractor that morning. The tractor then turned and struck him.

Matthew Butler, who is in his early 40s, was struck by the spray boom of a tractor. The accident occurred between 8:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. in the 4100 block of Thigpen Trail, a short distance from Shorty B Road.

Butler had just started operating the sprayer in the field when he fell from the tractor, according to the Colquitt County Sheriff’s Office.

After Butler fell the tractor did a near-360 degree turn in a ditch.

“It appeared he maybe had some kind of medical problem,” said Bay Fire Department Chief Chuck Scarborough, who said he was the first to arrive to check on Butler. “He fell off a tractor. It went through a ditch and back. It threw him off the first time through the ditch and then the second time it ran over him.”

The sheriff’s office said the tractor did not run over Butler; instead, the spray boom struck him in the head.

The sheriff’s office said it is not known why Butler fell, but a deputy was told that Butler had a history of seizures. When first responders reached him he was breathing normally but unresponsive, but after some time he recovered and was able to talk with his rescuers.

He received head and face injuries when struck by the spray boom.

Butler was taken by air to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital.

On Thursday afternoon, a hospital spokeswoman said that he was in fair condition.