Three Lincoln Co. residents involved in separate fatal crashes

Multiple Lincoln County residents were involved in two recent fatal traffic accidents in Western Montana.

According to Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Virgil Sadewasser, a 71-year-old Rexford woman died and a 70-year-old Rexford man was injured in an accident Sunday afternoon.

According to the MHP report, the man was driving a Can-Am Quadricycle west on Yaak River Road at milemarker 48 at 1:25 p.m. when it went off the right side of the road before overcorrecting to the left. The vehicle rolled and overturned several times.

The woman died at the scene while the man was taken to Logan Health in Kalispell. Neither wore helmets.

Drugs and alcohol were not suspected in the crash, but speed was believed to be a factor.

In the other crash, a 26-year-old Eureka man was involved in a two-vehicle where a 82-year-old Utah man died following a collision at 5:15 p.m. Thursday, July 17, on Interstate 15 near Dillon in Beaverhead County.

According to the MHP report, the Eureka man was driving a Chevy Silverado south on I-15 when he attempted to pass a motorcycle. He did not see another motorcycle, a BMW K1200RS driven by the Utah man, in the left lane and the rear driver side corner of a trailer being hauled by the Silverado struck the motorcycle’s side car.

The Utah man, who was wearing a helmet, was thrown off the motorcycle in the median. He was taken to Draper Hospital where he died of his injuries.

The 26-year-old Eureka man and two passengers in the Silverado, a 27-year-old Missoula woman and a 14-year-old boy, no residence listed, were each wearing their seat belts and were not injured.

Alcohol and drugs were suspected factors in the crash, but speed was not.