Owatonna Man Killed in One of Hundreds of Crashes Statewide
St. Paul, MN (KROC-AM News) - It appears slippery conditions created by light snow contributed to at least two fatal traffic crashes in Minnesota this weekend.
The State Patrol says snow and ice were present on I-94 in Bloomington Saturday night when an eastbound SUV went off the roadway and crashed into a fence. The single-vehicle crash was reported around 9:20 PM.
The driver of the SUV, 74-year-old Mark Hall of Owatonna, was transported to a nearby hospital where he died from his injuries. His passenger, 72-year-old Brenda Hall of Owatonna, was not injured.
Early Saturday morning a 21-year-old man from Dover was fatally injured when the SUV he was driving rolled in the median on I-90 near Worthington. The State Patrol described the freeway as partially covered by snow and ice and also indicated that Emiliano Kosnopfal was not wearing a seatbelt.
Statewide, the State Patrol is reporting the slippery conditions contributed to nearly 240 crashes between 9 AM and 9 PM on Saturday. 30 of the crashes resulted in injuries. There were also 106 reports of vehicles spinning out or sliding off roadways and 2 jackknifed semi-trucks.
A third traffic fatality was reported Saturday morning near Hibbing. The State Patrol says 20-year-old Levi Greenwood of Hibbing was killed in a head-on collision with a semi-truck on Highway 169. It does not appear slippery conditions were a contributing factor in that crash
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