Man Critical After Western Wis. Crash, Driver Arrested

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – An Ellsworth, Wis., man is in critical condition after being ejected from a car in a crash early Saturday morning where the driver had been drinking, according to police.

Authorities were called at about 2:42 a.m. to the area of Kruger Lane and Anika Court on a report of a man lying in the roadway. When officers arrived, they learned the victim was a passenger in a car and had been ejected from the vehicle in a crash. The victim, identified by authorities as Nicholas Robert Rhiel, was taken to River Falls Area Hospital and then airlifted to Regions Hospital where he remains in critical condition.

The driver of the car, identified as Connor Charles Johnson, was later arrested for operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated causing injury.

The incident remains under investigation. Ellsworth Police were assisted at the scene by the Pierce County Sheriff's Office, Wisconsin State Patrol and the Ellsworth Fire Department.