(Spencer)– A two-vehicle collision over the weekend in Clay county has taken the life of a Sioux Falls man.
The Sheriff’s Office says 22-year-old Terry Lee Janssen of Sioux Falls was pronounced dead at the scene of a mishap that took place around 9:15 p.m. Saturday on Highway 18 between 170th and 180th Avenues.
Authorities say Janssen was driving a 1990 Pontiac Grand Prix eastbound when he crossed the center line, colliding head-on with a 2005 Ford F150 pickup driven by 37-year-old Donald Sonich the second of Hartley. The pickup Sonich was driving came to rest in the north ditch; the vehicle driven by Janssen remained on the highway.
Sonich had to be extricated from his vehicle and was transported to Spencer Hospital before being life-flighted to Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls. He’s in the intensive care unit with non-life threatening injuries. Hospital officials aren’t releasing his condition.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office says preliminary findings indicate alcohol and failure to wear a seatbelt were contributing factors in the fatality.
The crash resulted in a portion of Highway 18 being closed to traffic for about three and-a-half hours Saturday night.
The Sheriff’s Office was assisted on the scene by the Iowa State Patrol, Spencer Police Department, Clay County Conservation, Everly Fire and Rescue, Spencer Fire and Rescue and Royal Fire and Rescue.
