Authorities in Iowa have reported that six people died and at least eight others were injured Monday in crashes throughout Iowa.
Among those killed were two sisters, ages 13 and 17. They were both killed in the crash at about 8:30 AM Monday when two vehicles collided on County Road W40 in Decorah in Winneshiek County, State Patrol said. Four other teenagers, ages 14 and 15, were injured and hospitalized.
The people who were killed have been identified as Avery Arneson, 17, and Aiden Arneson, 13, both of whom are from Decorah. Avery Arneson was driving a 1990 Oldsmobile Alero traveling northbound on County Road W40 when he lost control, crossed the center line and slid sideways, colliding with the passenger side of a 2008 Ford F-150.
The crash report made the accident appear to have been caused by the extreme weather conditions. However, it was not immediately clear if weather contributed to the crash. The spokesman for Lowa State Patrol Nathan Ludwig and Jeff Ritzman, a colonel with State Patrol suspected the crash was weather-related.
As if that was not enough, two men in Cedar Rapids were pronounced dead and a third suffered serious injuries at about 11:20 AM in a crash on Interstate Highway 380 northbound, just past the U.S. Highway 30 exit, police said.
The two men killed were ages 21 and 24, though their names have not yet been released. The third man was sent to UnityPoint-St. Luke’s Hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. A 2007 Mercury Montego that had left the roadway and struck a pillar support of a bridge overpass. No other vehicle was involved. The crash was one of 44 reported between 11 AM and 3:30 PM in Cedar Rapids, half of which occurred on I-380, Buelow said.
Hours later, another crash was reported in which one person died and several people were critically injured in a major pileup involving 50 to 70 cars, as well as buses and semi-trucks that forced Interstate Highway 35 southbound and northbound to close near Ames.
The road remained closed Monday afternoon between 13th Street and U.S. 30 in Ames near the 116 milepost, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation. It was the largest crash throughout the state.
The crashes happened in the southbound lanes but the northbound lanes were closed to give emergency vehicles access to people. The lanes were still closed as of 4:37 PM Monday.
"It's a mess," Ludwig said. "They're trying to get everyone to slow down."
