The names of two people who died Saturday evening in a two-vehicle crash east of Plankinton have been released.
Preliminary crash information indicates a 1999 Ford Crown Victoria was traveling eastbound in the westbound lanes of Interstate 90 near mile marker 311 when it collided head-on with a westbound 2024 Kenworth semi-tractor trailer combination.
Owen Robert Gjerdahl, 17, of Mitchell, S.D. was the driver of the Crown Victoria. He was not wearing a seatbelt. Jeffrey Duane McGhee Jr., 29, of Mt. Vernon, S.D., was a passenger in the Crown Victoria. He also was not wearing a seatbelt. Both Gjerdahl and McGhee were pronounced dead at the scene. Francisco Parra-Navarro, 63, of Sioux Falls was the driver of the semi-truck. Parra-Navarro was wearing a seatbelt and was not injured.
South Dakota’s Highway Patrol is investigating the crash. All information released so far is only preliminary.
The Highway Patrol is an agency of the South Dakota Department of Public Safety.
