Five people — including four members of the same family — died in a head-on crash along a southwest Minnesota highway on Friday afternoon.
The Minnesota State Patrol said the crash happened just after 4:30 p.m. Friday along U.S. Highway 71 between Windom and Sanborn. A northbound SUV collided head-on with a southbound Ford Transit van carrying 13 people.
The driver and sole occupant of the SUV, as well as four passengers in the van, died from their injuries. The other nine people in the van were injured, two critically.
The state patrol said alcohol use is not suspected to be a factor in the crash. Authorities haven’t released further details about the circumstances of the crash.
The patrol identified the driver of the SUV as 67-year-old Martin Hanson of Springfield.
The four van passengers who died in the crash were Richard Johnson and Kathleen Johnson, both 73 and from Jackson; 49-year-old Kelly Hargus of Jackson; and 47-year-old Lindsey Rossow of Lakefield.
A relative told KARE 11 that the Johnsons were married, and that Hargus and Rossow were two of their daughters. Two other daughters were among those injured in the crash.
An organizer of an online fundraiser for one of the injured daughters — Kassandra Ambrose, 44, of Jackson — said the crash happened while the family was out celebrating Richard Johnson’s birthday. They said Ambrose underwent more than seven hours of surgery on Saturday.
The Jackson County Central school district said several people involved in the crash have connections to the district, including parents and relatives of students.
“We understand that news like this can be difficult for children to process and may impact students in different ways. On Monday, crisis response team members will be available in our schools to support any students or staff who may need someone to talk to,” superintendent Mike Neubeck said in a message on the district’s Facebook page. “We encourage you to check in with your child, listen to their questions, and provide reassurance as needed.”
Friday’s crash was the deadliest on Minnesota roads since 2023, when five young women died when their car was struck by another vehicle traveling at high speed in Minneapolis.
Collected from Minnesota Public Radio News. View original source here.
Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) is a public radio network for the US state of Minnesota. With its three services, MPR News, YourClassical MPR and The Current, MPR operates a 46-station regional radio network in the upper Midwest.
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