One dead in two-vehicle crash near Sturgis – Mitchell Republic

STURGIS, SD — An 83-year-old woman died Friday morning when a towed boat became unhitched and collided head-on with her vehicle near Sturgis.

The names of those involved have been withheld pending notification to family members.

According to the South Dakota Department of Public Safety, preliminary crash information indicates the driver of a 2016 Chrysler 300 was heading south on SD Highway 79 near mile marker 124. At the same location, the driver of a 2022 Ford F-350 pulling a trailer The pontoon boat was heading north when the trailer hitch became disconnected from the pickup truck and the safety chains failed to control the trailer and the boat.

The trailer and boat entered the southbound lane and collided with the Chrysler. The trailer, boat and Chrysler came to rest on the southbound shoulder and in the west ditch. The driver of the Chrysler was fatally injured. Neither the driver nor the passenger of the pickup were injured.

The crash happened around 10:21 a.m. Friday near mile marker 24 on SD Highway 79, about 11 miles north of Sturgis.

The South Dakota Highway Patrol is investigating the crash. All information released so far is only preliminary.

The Highway Patrol is an agency of the South Dakota Department of Public Safety.

Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under the byline “Mitchell Republic.” Often, the byline “Mitchell Republic” is used when rewriting basic press releases that come from official sources, such as a city press release regarding a road closure, and that require little or no reporting. Sometimes this byline is used when a news story includes many authors or when the news story is formed by aggregating previously reported information from various sources. If outside sources are used, this is noted in the story.