3 Killed In 3 Separate Crashes On Minnesota Roads

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Three people have been killed in three separate crashes on Minnesota roads Thursday, according to the Minnesota State Patrol.

On Thursday shortly before 10 a.m., a Chevy pickup crossed the center line on Highway 37 in Hibbing and crashed head-on with a semi.

The driver of the truck, 65-year-old Curtis Dean Leppa of Hibbing, was killed in the crash. He was not wearing a seatbelt. The semi driver suffered non-life threatening injuries.

Another fatal crash was reported shortly after 12:30 p.m. in Polk County on Highway 2. There, a truck driver from North Dakota rear-ended a semi and was killed. The semi driver was uninjured.

Lastly, a fatal crash happened around 5:48 a.m. in Itasca County on Highway 2. There, a Dodge Caliber was traveling westbound when it crossed the centerline and crashed into a Chevrolet van.

The driver of the Dodge, 66-year-old Patricia Francois of Deer River, was killed in the crash. The driver of the van, 60-year-old Peter Boyd of Wawina, suffered life-threatening injuries and was airlifted to St. Mary's Hospital.

Alcohol was not a factor in the Itasca and St. Louis County crashes. It's unknown if alcohol played a factor in the Polk County crash.