Male driver dies in fiery crash on Hwy. 95 in Isanti County
Responders rescued a woman who was pinned in another vehicle involved in the head-on crash.
By Tim Harlow Star Tribune
July 8, 2016 — 7:25am
The State Patrol says it “may take some time” to identify the man who was killed in a fiery head-on crash early Thursday on a two-lane highway in Isanti County.
Two other people were injured, including a woman who was extricated from a full-size SUV after police used their squads to push her vehicle away from the man’s burning vehicle.
“The deputies, realizing that if they did not get the SUV moved, it was likely that it would start on fire and the pinned driver likely would die if that SUV started on fire,” said Sheriff Chris Caulk.
Deputies were called to the intersection of Hwy. 95 and Zodiac Street about 2:15 a.m. after a westbound Buick Century driven by a 31-year-old St. Paul man crossed the centerline and struck an eastbound GMC Yukon. The car burst into flames and the driver trapped in the car died at the scene, authorities said.
Riding in the SUV were Rosario Garcia, 36, of Mora, and 12-year-old Ashley Cardoso.
Cardoso was able to get out of the SUV, but Garcia was pinned inside and deputies were not immediately able to get her out. As the fire was about to spread to the SUV, deputies used their squads to push it out of the way. Crews from the North Branch Fire Department were able to extricate Garcia from the SUV and put out the fire in the other vehicle.
Garcia was taken to Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids with serious injuries. Cardoso suffered noncritical injuries, the patrol said.
A Minnesota State Patrol reconstruction team is investigating the crash.
The medical examiner will release the name of the man, but “this may take some time,” the patrol said.