Five die in weekend highway accidents

The Daily Inter Lake

and The Associated Press

The man who died in a motorcycle crash on U.S. 93 south of Somers on Saturday afternoon has been identified as Terry Miller, 58.

Miller, a longtime Kalispell resident, co-owned Northwest Truss Co. south of Kalispell.

An autopsy performed at Kalispell Regional Medical Center confirmed he died of head injuries when his motorcycle left the roadway and went into a ditch shortly after 3 p.m. Miller was wearing a helmet, Flathead County Patrol Cmdr. Dave Leib said, but it came off in the crash.

His wife, Katy, was riding with him but was not injured. Memorial services for Miller will be at 4 p.m. Wednesday in the White Oak Grand at the Best Western on U.S. 93 and Montana 82.

The Montana Highway Patrol is investigating the accident.

Miller was one of five people who died in weekend crashes on state roadways, bringing this year's fatality toll to 74. That is four more than at the same time a year ago, the Highway Patrol said.

At about 6 a.m. Sunday, a car went off U.S. 87 between Billings and Roundup, went into the ditch and rolled several times. The occupants, an 18-year-old man and a 20-year-old woman, were ejected and killed, the patrol said. Their names were not released.

A woman in her mid-30s died Sunday afternoon of injuries she suffered in a crash at about 12:30 a.m. Sunday south of Browning.

The patrol said the woman drove off a curve on U.S. 89 and the vehicle rolled three times. She was not wearing a seat belt.

The woman, whose name and hometown have not been released, was taken to Kalispell Regional Medical Center, where she died.

At about 2:30 a.m. Saturday, a sport utility vehicle went off Montana 59 South at a curve in the road about 23 miles south of Miles City. The driver overcorrected and struck an approach. The vehicle went airborne, rolled and caught fire.

The driver, a 31-year-old man from Miles City, died, the patrol said. His name has not been released.