One dead in Palmer-Wasilla Highway crash

Andrew Wellner

WASILLA — A 16-year-old girl died Monday on the Palmer-Wasilla Highway when her Volkswagen beetle collided with a Ford truck.

Alaska State Trooper Sgt. Pat Davis said on scene that names are being withheld pending notification of the next of kin.

He said the crash occurred at about 8:45 a.m. The truck’s occupants were hospitalized with injuries that didn’t appear life threatening, Davis said.

“We actually had a trooper that was right here when it happened. He heard the accident happen and looked up,” Davis said.

Troopers kept one lane of the highway open for most of the morning, alternating the direction of traffic flow. A 10 a.m. as tow truck crews worked to separate and remove the vehicles, the road was shut down entirely. Motorists pulled into a nearby coffee stand to ask for directions around the snarl.

As Davis spoke, rescue crews from the Central Mat-Su Fire Department worked to pull the girl from her wrecked Volkswagen. They cut the roof from the vehicle and, at 11:15 a.m. the girl was removed from the scene in a State Medical Examiner’s van.

Contact Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.