A car crossed into the path of a truck hauling a piece of heavy equipment in East Bethel, leaving one person dead and another critically hurt in the smaller vehicle, and three others hospitalized, authorities said.

The crash occurred shortly after 11 a.m. Thursday on Hwy. 65 at 181st Avenue NE., according to the Anoka County Sheriff's Office.

Dead at the scene was a front-seat passenger in the car, a 34-year-old woman from East Bethel, the Sheriff's Office said. The car's driver, a 32-year-old woman from East Bethel, was taken by air ambulance to Hennepin County Medical Center with critical injuries.

According to the Sheriff's Office:

A flatbed truck hauling a skid loader was heading south on Hwy. 65 and hit the passenger side of a car that "tried to cut directly into [the truck's] path" while heading west on 181st.

Expected to survive their injuries were a 13-year-old girl in the car's back seat, the truck's 60-year-old driver from Anoka and his passenger, a 52-year-old man from Mounds View.

Authorities were waiting to notify relatives before releasing anyone's identities.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482