Press Release -- On Sunday January 22, 2017 at 3:56 am the Barron County Sheriff’s Department received a call of a car vs. semi accident on Hwy 8 west of County Road TT-west of Barron.
Deputies from the Barron County Sheriff’s Department along with Gold Cross Ambulance, Barron Fire Department and Turtle Lake First Responders responded to the scene.
Upon arrival deputies advised of two people trapped in the semi and one injured in a car. Another Gold Cross Ambulance along with the Cumberland Ambulance, Almena Fire Department and the Barron and Cumberland Police Departments were requested to respond to the scene and Hwy 8 was closed.
Initial investigation shows a car driven by Nicholas Rogalla, 22 of Rice Lake was traveling east on Hwy 8 when it crossed the center line and struck a semi, traveling west on Hwy 8, driven by Jerald Olmsted, 48 of Clintonville. Olmsted’s semi overturned and slid into the ditch on the south side of Hwy 8. Olmsted was carrying a tanker full of milk. Jerald was extricated and taken by ambulance to Luther-Mayo Hospital with severe injuries. Rogalla was taken to Mayo Hospital Barron with non life threatening injuries.
Olmsted had a passenger in the semi who was trapped underneath the semi and was pronounced deceased at the scene. That subject was Alex Olmsted, 9 and son of driver Jerald.
Hwy 8 was closed for 8 ½ hours by the Barron County Hwy Department and this crash remains under investigation by the Barron County Sheriff’s Department and the Wisconsin State Patrol.
This is Barron County’s third traffic fatality in 2017.
Per Chris Fitzgerald, Barron County Sheriff
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Fatal Crash on Hwy 8 in Barron County
Sunday, January 22, 2017 | By Ben Dryden I DrydenWire.com
A crash occurred at approximately 3:40 AM today January 22, 2017 on US Highway 8 in Barron County, WI, at County Highway TT.
At approximately 7:30 this morning, via their Facebook page, the Barron County Sheriff's Department stated that the crash resulted in a fatality.
Traffic lanes in both directions are expected to be closed for several more hours due to this crash.
The WisDOT advises drivers to use these alternate routes: For westbound traffic: Exit on County TT. Go south on County TT to 13th Ave. Go west on 13th Ave to 11th St. Go north on 11th St back to US 8. Reverse directions for eastbound traffic.
Updates
[9:52 a.m.] -- US 8 remains closed in both directions at County TT
[12:06 p.m] -- All lanes now open
Last Update: Jan 22, 2017 9:00 pm CST
