Bigfork teen dies in crash in Whitefish

A 17-year-old Bigfork girl is dead after a single-vehicle crash on Saturday in Whitefish.

According to a Montana Highway Patrol report, a 20-year-old Marion man was driving a Dodge Ram 1500 pickup west on Mountain Meadow Road when the truck drifted off the right side of the road, sideswiping a tree. The pickup traveled down an embankment and hit another tree before coming to a rest. 

The crash occurred around 1:50 a.m. Alcohol is a suspected factor in the crash. 

The driver was wearing a seat belt. The teen, who was reportedly not wearing a seat belt, was pronounced dead at the scene. A second passenger, a 17-year-old Kalispell girl who was wearing a seat belt, was transported to Logan Health Medical Center, according to the report.