Woman dies in rollover accident
The Daily Inter Lake
A 28-year-old woman from the Kalispell area was killed Wednesday when her car ran off the road, rolled and ejected her south of Kalispell.
The woman was northbound on Farm Road in a Chevrolet Suburban about 10 minutes before midnight when she drifted partially off the road, according to the Montana Highway Patrol.
She overcorrected and veered off the west side of the road, where her vehicle rolled once and ejected her.
Investigators do not yet know what caused the woman, whose name is being withheld pending notification of her family, to leave the roadway, Montana Highway Patrol trooper Dustin LeRette said.
The woman, who died at the scene from a spinal fracture, was the vehicle's only occupant.
She wasn't wearing a seat belt and speed was a factor, LeRette said. It is not yet known whether alcohol contributed to the crash, he said.
Investigators believe the wreck was found soon after the crash took place. Residents of a house about 400 feet from the scene of the accident heard the crash, looked outside, saw headlights flickering in a field, and then called emergency personnel.
The Kalispell Fire Department, South Kalispell Fire Department, Lakeside Quick Response Unit, Montana Highway Patrol, and Flathead County Sheriff's Office responded to the accident.
The woman's death is the 22nd traffic-related fatality in Flathead County this year.
Separately, investigators have released the name of a 43-year-old St. Ignatius man killed Monday evening when his truck left the road and struck a utility pole.
Mack Olson was westbound on Toweepah Road at about 7 p.m. when he rounded a corner too quickly for icy conditions and lost control of his car, according to the Montana Highway Patrol.
He was reportedly on his way home after watching a basketball game in St. Ignatius.
Olson's truck slid sideways into a telephone pole, rolled once and came to rest back on its wheels.
He was taken to St. Luke Community Hospital in Ronan, where he was pronounced dead.
Olson was the only occupant of the car. Excessive speed and hazardous road conditions were factors in the accident.