A Minneapolis man's van strayed into the opposite lane on a western Wisconsin highway and struck a car head-on, killing a passenger from the Twin Cities in the other vehicle, authorities said Monday.
The crash occurred shortly before 7 p.m. Sunday on Hwy. 8 near 125th Avenue, about 3 miles west of the St. Croix Casino in Turtle Lake, according to the Polk County Sheriff's Office.
Umalkhayr A. Ali, 22, of St. Paul, was killed in the crash, according to the sheriff's office. Another passenger in the car from St. Paul, Asri D. Dubow, 28, was taken by air ambulance to Regions Hospital in St. Paul for treatment of her injuries. The two drivers suffered noncritical injuries.
Authorities have not disclosed what led to the van crossing the center line.
According to the sheriff's office: Abdiweli M. Mohamed, 23, was heading west on Hwy. 8 when he crossed into the oncoming lane. A car being driven by Mohammed H. Mohammed, 23, of Barron, Wis., moved to the left in an attempt to avoid the van, but the van cut back to the right toward the westbound lane and the vehicles collided.
Dubow was thrown from the vehicle into a ditch. Emergency responders freed Ali from the wreckage.
The highway was closed for about four hours to allow investigators to piece together how the crash occurred.
Paul Walsh
