A Minneapolis man was struck and killed by a motorist while walking on a dark country road in Fish Lake Township on Friday night.

Kenneth E. Austin, 43, was heading to retrieve his car from a local bar less than a mile from where he'd been staying in Chisago County, police said. He was hit around 10:22 p.m. on Stark Road while stumbling down the centerline, Sgt. Kyle Puelston said.

According to the Chisago County Sheriff's Office:

A woman was driving down Stark Road, heading to see her mother when she saw a man walking in the middle of the street. She swerved left to try to avoid him, but he stumbled into her car.

The driver stopped to look for the man, and called 911 after failing to locate him. Police found two shoes in the middle of the road and his body in a nearby ditch. Austin was dead at the scene.

The State Patrol assisted with crash reconstruction, and the driver was released. "It was clear that she was not impaired. … It was obvious it was unavoidable on her part," Puelston said.

Text messages show that Austin had asked a friend for a ride to a neighborhood bar to retrieve his vehicle, but the friend was unable to take him. Austin decided to walk there himself.

The Midwest medical examiner's office will conduct an autopsy.

Liz Sawyer • 612-673-4648