Executive Summary
- A fatal crash occurred on I-90 near Austin, Minnesota, shortly before 9 p.m. Thursday.
- A Subaru SUV struck a deer and stalled in the westbound traffic lane.
- A second vehicle collided with the disabled SUV, killing a 61-year-old passenger.
- The Minnesota State Patrol confirmed alcohol was not involved and seatbelts were used.
An Iowa man died Thursday night in a collision on Interstate 90 in southeast Minnesota after the SUV in which he was a passenger struck a deer and became disabled in the roadway, according to the Minnesota State Patrol.
The fatal incident occurred shortly before 9:00 p.m. approximately one mile east of Austin in Mower County. State Patrol investigators determined that a westbound Subaru SUV, driven by 60-year-old Sarah Jean Shultz of Osage, Iowa, initially struck a deer. The impact caused the vehicle to stall directly in the traffic lane.
A westbound Nissan SUV, driven by 36-year-old Amanda Rebecca Dunlap of Austin, subsequently collided with the stationary Subaru, according to the state crash report. Emergency responders from the Mower County Sheriff’s Office, Austin Police Department, Mayo Clinic Ambulance, and Rose Creek Fire Department arrived at the scene to assist.
The passenger in the Subaru, identified in the report as a 61-year-old man from Osage, Iowa, sustained fatal injuries. Authorities indicated his name would be withheld pending family notification. Shultz was transported to a hospital in Austin with non-life-threatening injuries, while the State Patrol reported that Dunlap was uninjured in the collision.
According to the official crash report, alcohol was not a contributing factor for either driver, and all occupants were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash.
Roadway Safety Implications
This collision highlights the compounding dangers of wildlife interactions on high-speed interstates, particularly when such incidents leave vehicles immobilized in active traffic lanes. The event underscores the critical challenges drivers face during nighttime conditions when visibility is reduced and reaction times to stationary obstacles are minimized. While the investigation remains active to finalize the sequence of events, the incident serves as a grim reminder of the unpredictability of wildlife crossings in rural Minnesota corridors.
