A head-on crash Friday, Dec. 1, at approximately 1:35 p.m. on Highway 34 between Osceola and Murray left one dead and one in critical condition.
According to a report released by the Iowa State Patrol, 91-year-old Jack England of Osceola was traveling east on Highway 34 in a 2022 Chevrolet Silverado when for reasons unknown he crossed the center line, colliding head-on with 33-year-old Tiffany Oswald of Murray, was was traveling west in a 2015 Lexus RX350.
England was pronounced dead at the scene. Oswald was transported via Methodist LifeFlight to Methodist Hospital in Des Moines, where her status was listed as in critical condition. She was later transported to Iowa City. Both England and Oswald were wearing seatbelts.
The portion of the highway remained closed for several hours as crews cleared the scene. Osceola, Murray and Iowa State Patrol services responded to the accident.
Afton crash
An accident later that day further west on Highway 34 claimed the lives of two teenagers and injured another.
According to the Iowa State Patrol, an accident in Union County happened at approximately 7 p.m. Friday at the intersection of Highway 34 and Iris Avenue.
A 1996 Peterbilt semi, driven by Kelly Lee Jones, 63, of Creston, stopped on Iris Avenue, then proceeded to turn left onto Highway 34. A 2008 Ford Explorer driven by Izabella Martinez, 17, of Omaha, was eastbound on Highway 34 when it struck the grain hopper the semi was pulling.
Martinez and passenger Alex C. Mauseth, 18, of Omaha, were both pronounced dead. A backseat passenger, 14-year-old Xavier Martinez, of Omaha, was injured and transported to the hospital by Creston EMS. All passengers were wearing seatbelts.
Jones was not injured in the accident. Highway 34 was closed for more than four hours as crews worked to clear the scene.
Creston News Advertiser contributed to this story.