(Jackson, Mn.)– Slick roads were cited as a factor in several crashes over the weekend in southwest Minnesota, including one Saturday on Interstate 90 at the Highway 71 exit in Jackson that resulted in multiple injuries.
The Minnesota State Patrol says 40-year-old Mario Tobar of San Salvador lost control of an eastbound 2001 Ford van on the ice-covered overpass. The van flipped and rolled along the guard rail and crashed into the median, coming to rest upside down.
Two people, 26-year-old Mariella Gallardo of Houston, Texas, and 45-year-old Jose Herrera of San Salvador were thrown from the vehicle and landed in the middle of the eastbound lane. Gallardo sustained face, neck and back injuries and was taken to the Fairmont hospital; Herrera sustained severe head injuries and was airlifted to Sanford Hospital in Sioux Falls.
Tobar and five additional passengers were also injured.
Tobar sustained a facial injury and was taken to Sanford Hospital in Sioux Falls; 42-year-old William Gonzalez of San Salvador was airlifted to Mayo Hospital in Rochester with severe injuries to his hands and a foot; 26-year-old Samuel Sarcino of San Salvador was taken to the Fairmont Hospital where he was treated and released for a sore back and head; 40-year-old Edwin Beltran of San Salvador was taken to Sanford Hospital in Jackson where he was treated for a sore leg and released; 29-year-old Marvin Gomez of San Salvador was taken to Sanford Hospital in Sioux Falls with cuts, bumps and bruises; and 39-year-old Salvador Cortez of Houston, Texas was taken to the Fairmont hospital with cuts, bumps and bruises.
The van was totaled.
The crash took place around 7:45 a.m. Saturday.
Authorities say the San Salvadorans were with a musical group from that country that’s touring the U.S.
The Minnesota State Patrol was assisted on the scene by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and the Jackson Police Department.
