ITASCA COUNTY, Minn. — Two people are dead and two are in serious condition after an ambulance and a dump truck collided Tuesday morning in Itasca County.
According to information from the Minnesota State Patrol, an ambulance was headed south on County Road 336 in Lawrence Township around 10:20 a.m. Tuesday. A dump truck was traveling eastbound on County Road 57, and struck the ambulance on the passenger side, T-boning it.
The driver of the dump truck, 67-year old Jeffery Elvin Ekholm of Nashwauk is currently in St. Luke's Hospital in Duluth with life-threatening injuries, according to police.
The ambulance's driver, 28-year-old Kimberly Fay Hake of Cohasset also suffered life-threatening injures, and is currently hospitalized at Grand Itasca Hospital in Grand Rapids.
According to police, the two passengers in the ambulance, 51-year-old Troy Edward Boettcher of Warba and 17-year-old Joseph Michael Latimer of Grand Rapids did not survive the collision.
Police do not believe alcohol played a roll in the crash.
Only a few weeks ago, on May 24, Minnesota DNR conservation officer Sarah Grell was killed in an accident at this same location. A semi struck Grell's vehicle on the driver's side door, killing her while she was on duty.
Rep. Spencer Igo, who represents the Grand Rapids area, issued a statement, saying: “It’s clear that safety at this intersection must be improved and I am committed to working with MnDOT and local officials to make sure that significant changes are made in the near future to prevent further accidents at this location.”
