A 44-year-old man died Saturday afternoon after his SUV collided with a semi-truck at a rural Kandiyohi County intersection that has seen at least one similar crash before. The crash happened just before 1:51 p.m. at the intersection of County Road 2 and County Road 33 in Roseville Township, where the man's eastbound SUV struck a semi-truck pulling a trailer that was traveling northbound on County Road 2.
The man was pronounced dead at the scene, according to FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul, which cited information from Kandiyohi County Sheriff's Sgt. Shawn Swanson. The 67-year-old semi driver was treated at the scene and later released, the station reported. Names of those involved are being withheld pending notification of family.
Emergency crews from multiple agencies responded to free the SUV driver from the wreckage. The New London Fire Department and the Kandiyohi County Rescue Squad worked to extricate the man from his vehicle, while the New London Ambulance and CentraCare Ambulance provided emergency care at the scene, per the same account. The Kandiyohi County Sheriff's Office had received the initial report of a two-vehicle crash with injuries Saturday afternoon, and the crash remains under investigation, sheriff's officials said.
A Familiar Danger at This Rural Crossing
This is not the first time this specific intersection has seen a right-angle collision between a vehicle on the minor road and thru-traffic on County Road 2. Back in May 2021, the Kandiyohi County Sheriff's Office responded to a personal injury crash at the same crossing of County Road 2 and County Road 33, when an eastbound SUV failed to yield and was struck by a northbound truck, according to a report from the sheriff's office. The geometry in both incidents mirrors a pattern researchers have flagged: a minor road crossing a major thru-corridor where drivers must judge gaps in fast oncoming traffic without a stop sign of their own on the major route.
Heavy truck traffic on Kandiyohi County roads has factored into other recent crashes as well. Just weeks before this crash, on August 6, the sheriff's office investigated a two-vehicle collision in nearby Burbank Township involving a 17-year-old driver and a 2020 Kenworth semi-truck pulling a trailer, per the sheriff's office. And in May, a semi-truck collided broadside with a passenger vehicle along County Road 2 at Highway 55 near Paynesville, killing an elderly passenger, as Hoodline reported in its earlier coverage of a fatal Highway 55 crash.
Why Rural Stop-Sign Intersections Turn Deadly
Research published by the University of Minnesota Center for Transportation Studies in September 2022 found that crashes at rural two-way stop-controlled intersections account for 65 percent of all fatal traffic crashes statewide, a pattern driven largely by drivers misjudging the speed and distance of oncoming traffic on the uncontrolled major road. To address that risk, the Minnesota Department of Transportation has deployed Rural Intersection Conflict Warning Systems at more than 50 high-risk crossings statewide, using vehicle sensors to trigger electronic signage warning of approaching cross-traffic.
A study sponsored by the Minnesota Local Road Research Board identified 1,000 feet as the optimal sight distance needed at rural unsignalized intersections for drivers to accurately judge gaps before crossing, noting that obstructed sightlines from vegetation, topography, or farm equipment elevate crash risk. Separately, MnDOT data updated through October 2024 shows that replacing stop-controlled intersections with roundabouts reduces fatal crashes by 86 percent and serious injury crashes by 83 percent, part of why the state has built more than 530 roundabouts statewide.
The crash also lands within what the Minnesota Department of Public Safety Office of Traffic Safety calls the “100 Deadliest Days,” the stretch from Memorial Day through Labor Day when clear roads and heavier travel volumes historically push fatal crash rates higher statewide. Statewide, Minnesota recorded 370 traffic fatalities in 2025, a 22 percent drop from 2024 and the lowest annual total since 2019, according to a report highlighted by the Colorado Department of Transportation. Even so, Minnesota Department of Public Safety data shows more than 63,000 crashes occurred statewide in 2024 alone, resulting in 479 deaths and nearly 24,000 injuries, with speeding, impaired driving, distraction, and unbelted occupants cited as leading causes.
The Kandiyohi County Sheriff's Office has not released additional details about what led to Saturday's collision, and the investigation remains ongoing. Hoodline has also covered other recent fatal crashes in the county, including a motorcycle rider killed in a single-vehicle crash near Lake Lillian and a Good Samaritan struck and killed while checking on a crash near Willmar.
