At least eight people were killed in traffic crashes in Wisconsin over the weekend. Four of the fatalities occurred Saturday afternoon in Chippewa County.
The victims have been identified as 21-year-old Raven Ellin, 23-year-old Mikalla Toske, and 36-year-old Jonathan Jorgensen — all from Eau Claire — and 46-year-old Kristine Kummer of Medford. Five others apparently had non-life threatening injuries in the crash, which occurred near Cornell on Highway 64.
Sheriff’s deputies said the Eau Claire victims were in a minivan driven by a 23-year-old Eau Claire woman which drove past a stop sign and was hit by a truck pulling an enclosed trailer. Four of the five injured survivors were in the truck.
Four people were killed in in two separate fiery crashes in Walworth County on Sunday. In a crash that claimed three lives, sheriff’s deputies said car was driving at a high rate of speed on a rural road in the town of Lyons around 7:00 p.m. when it veered into the left ditch, hit a tree, and was engulfed in flames. Investigators said the three victims were badly burned, and have not been identified.
One man was killed in an earlier crash. Deputies said the driver of a pickup lost control on a curve and struck a metal utility pole. The truck was engulfed in flames when deputies arrived. It happened about 2:50 Sunday morning near Sharon, and the driver’s name was not immediately released.