Eyota, MN : Kellogg resident Andrew Johnson killed in fatal crash on Minnesota Highway 42 near Eyota on Thursday, June 18, 2015

A prominent local official is calling for change at a dangerous intersection after a second serious crash in a 10-day span.

A dump truck was traveling south on Minnesota Highway 42 at 3:04 p.m. Thursday when it collided with a vehicle moving eastbound on Olmsted County Road 9, a few miles north of Eyota, according to Minnesota State Patrol's incident report.

Kellogg resident Andrew Johnson was killed in the crash. He was 31. Funeral arrangements are pending.

Donald Wilkins, 61, was not injured. The Iowa man was driving the dump truck.

A June 9 crash at the same intersection left Winona native Ladd Gorman, 30, now of St. Louis Park, in critical condition in another broadside crash. He remains hospitalized in fair condition as of this morning, said a Mayo Clinic spokeswoman.

The State Patrol's incident report said Gorman did not stop at the stop sign located on County Road 9 to cause the first crash; vehicles on Highway 42 do not have a stop sign. It's unclear who was at fault for Thursday's deadly accident, but Eyota Mayor Tyrel Clark has requested additional safety measures be added by the Minnesota Department of Transportation to prevent any more tragedies at that intersection.

MnDOT spokesman Mike Dougherty said engineers with MnDOT and Olmsted County were trying to coordinate a meeting to discuss possibilities beofre Thursday's crash; that's expected to take place today or early next week. Rumble strips are an option, but Dougherty stressed the intersection already has increased safety measures not used at other sites, such as a rural intersection conflict warning system that warns motorists when vehicles are approaching from another direction.

Dougherty said it was tested hours before the crash and deemed to be working properly. However, additional measures may still be required by MnDOT, and a public meeting could be held at a later date.

"We're kind of waiting to see if we can get any additional information from the State Patrol about what the facts were to see if that can help us," Dougherty said.

The dangers of the Highway 42 and County Road 9 intersection are in the spotlight, in part, because of a $2.73 million MnDOT roundabout construction project on U.S. Highway 14 in Eyota that has funneled more than 10,000 vehicles a day through that area. The roundabout, which is meant to alter driving patterns after a fatal crash there in 2013, is expected to be completed within weeks.

Clark said both intersections were a problem when MnDOT funded the roundabout, and he intends to be "slightly louder" about calling for change on County Road 9.

"Historically, these two intersections have been really bad intersections," Clark said. "It seems like both of them are equally bad. For anybody who drives it, it's pretty concerning."

Source :
Second serious crash in 10 days prompts Eyota mayor's call for action