Bad roads contribute to double fatality
KRISTI NIEMEYER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 3 months AGO
Kristi Niemeyer is editor of the Lake County Leader. She learned her newspaper licks at the Mission Valley News and honed them at the helm of the Ronan Pioneer and, eventually, as co-editor of the Leader until 1993. She later launched and published Lively Times, a statewide arts and entertainment monthly (she still publishes the digital version), and produced and edited State of the Arts for the Montana Arts Council and Heart to Heart for St. Luke Community Healthcare. Reach her at editor@leaderadvertiser.com or 406-883-4343. | February 15, 2024 11:00 PM
Snow and icy roads contributed to a fatal collision on Highway 93 Thursday evening that killed 80-year-old Ila Griffin, and her passenger, 7-year-old Kathryn Griffin, of Ronan.
Lake County Dispatch received the report at 5:48 p.m. Feb. 15 of a head-on collision involving a passenger vehicle and a semi-truck at the intersection of Hwy. 93 and Eagle Pass Trail. The wreck caused traffic delays and road closures in the area.
The two victims were headed southbound in a Lincoln MKC when the driver lost control, crossed into oncoming traffic and collided with a northbound Peterbilt/Western truck pulling a Big Tex trailer. The truck, driven by a 56-year-old man from St. Maries, Idaho, came to rest blocking the southbound lane.
Both victims were pronounced dead at the scene, and the truck driver sustained injuries. Everyone involved in the accident was wearing a seatbelt, according to the Highway Patrol accident report.
In its press release, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office "extended condolences to the Griffin family in the loss of their loved ones."
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