Disasters

Weekend crashes on Minnesota roads leave 3 dead, several injured

Minnesota had a treacherous weekend on its roads with the state patrol reporting three fatalities and several injuries in multiple crashes between Friday and Sunday.

Just after 1 a.m. Saturday, a three-car crash killed one woman and severely injured another. According to the state patrol’s report, a 35-year-old woman from San Diego was driving a pickup truck north in the southbound lanes on Highway 52 in Pine Island Township. Two southbound vehicles collided with it.

A 60-year-old woman from Rochester, who was driving one of the southbound vehicles, was killed. The driver of the pickup truck sustained life-threatening injuries. The driver of the third vehicle, a 25-year-old woman, sustained minor injuries.

Alcohol was a factor in the crash, according to an incident report. 

A crash on I-90 in Worthington Friday afternoon left one woman dead. According to the state patrol’s incident report, a 75-year-old woman driving a Chevrolet Equinox was stopped in the eastbound lane. A Ram pickup truck hit the Chevrolet from behind.

The woman was treated at a hospital, but died of her injuries. She was not wearing a seatbelt, according to the report.

A 45-year-old woman from South Dakota was driving the Ram pickup truck, with two children as passengers. None of the truck’s occupants were hurt.

Another crash just before noon on Saturday killed one person and seriously injured another. The state patrol says a 36-year-old man from Harris was driving a Buick LeSabre on Highway 95 in Mille Lacs County when it veered over the center line and collided head-on with an oncoming car.

The driver of the Buick died. Three passengers in the car — including two children, aged 11 and 13 — were not wearing seatbelts and sustained minor injuries.

The driver of the other car, a 63-year-old woman from Menomonie, Wis., sustained life-threatening injuries and was taken to a hospital. An adult woman and a teenager riding in the car sustained minor injuries.

The patrol reported 10 other crashes resulting in injuries over the course of the weekend.

It continues a deadly trend on Minnesota’s roads for the year. According to the Department of Public Safety, preliminary data through Friday showed there were 309 road fatalities so far in 2024. That compares to 275 through the same time frame in 2023.