Two people were killed in car crashes in central Minnesota on Thursday and Friday, one of which involved a drunken driver, according to officials.
Dani Rebecca Detloff, 23, died Friday evening in a collision on Hwy. 371 near Backus, a city in Cass County about one hour north of Brainerd.
Detloff, of Backus, was driving a Ford Taurus east on a farm road approaching Hwy. 371 just before 6:30 p.m., according to a State Patrol report. Meanwhile, 55-year-old Paul Linn Hamilton of Backus was driving a Ford F-150 southbound on the highway.
Detloff was fatally struck by Hamilton's truck as she pulled out from a stop sign, according to the report.
Both Hamilton and his passenger, Jennifer Jane Hamilton, were under the influence of alcohol, according the report. They were not hurt. Everyone was wearing seat belts, the patrol said.
On Thursday, 47-year-old Scott Novak died after crashing his vehicle into a ditch in a rural area outside of Little Falls, a city 30 minutes south of Brainerd.
Novak was driving down his driveway to pick up the mail Thursday afternoon, according to the Morrison County Sheriff's Office. The car continued out of the driveway, across 120th Avenue and into a ditch, hitting a road sign.
Deputies found Novak unconscious behind the wheel about 3:41 p.m., according to the Sheriff's Office. He was taken to St. Gabriel's Hospital in Little Falls, where he died.
