A woman driving on Interstate 35E in White Bear Township died Monday morning after going into a ditch and crashing into the concrete pillar of a noise wall along the freeway.
Leslie Katherine Goodale, 50, was headed north on I-35E when her Honda left the freeway near County Road H2 and struck the barrier about 6:25 a.m. The car burst into flames and Goodale was ejected from the vehicle, the State Patrol said.
Goodale, of Minneapolis, was not wearing a seat belt. She died at the scene, the patrol said.
The car fire forced the closure of the northbound lanes for a couple hours and led to slowdowns in the southbound lanes during the morning rush hour, Minnesota Department of Transportation cameras showed.
The freeway reopened by midmorning.
Tim Harlow • 612-673-7768
