Three die in crash near Marion

A three-vehicle crash on U.S. 2 east of Marion Saturday evening claimed the lives of three Kalispell residents and left three other people involved in the crash injured.

The Flathead County Sheriff’s Office on Monday released the names of the deceased victims as Edward Shawn Stefanatz, 43; Tesa Marie Rein, 44; and Zachary Rein, 16. All three were riding in the same vehicle, a Ford Tempo, and none were wearing seatbelts at the time of the accident, according to the Montana Highway Patrol.

According the patrol report, Stefanatz was driving the Ford in the eastbound lane of U.S. 2 when he was pushed into oncoming traffic after it was struck from behind by the driver of a Toyota Tundra at 6:15 p.m. on Saturday, near the entrance to the green-box site for the Ashley Lake neighborhood.

Stefanatz and two of his passengers were pronounced dead at the scene.

A 7-year-old boy also riding in the car was injured and transported to Kalispell Regional Medical Center.

Their car was struck by a westbound Jeep Wrangler driven by a 51-year-old woman. Both the woman and her female passenger in the Jeep were wearing their seatbelts and were taken to the hospital in Kalispell after sustaining minor injuries. They were discharged from the hospital later that night, according to Montana Highway Patrol Trooper James Hawkins, who is heading up the investigation.

The driver of the Toyota, a 58-year-old man, was uninjured.

Hawkins said it’s unclear what caused the Toyota to rear-end Stefanatz, or whether drugs or alcohol were a factor.

“It’s certainly still under investigation. I don’t believe alcohol was a factor, but it can’t be ruled out yet,” Hawkins said.

The Flathead County Sheriff’s Office, Smith Valley Fire Department, Marion Fire Department and the Montana Department of Transportation all responded to the crash.

Reporter Sam Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com.