Two die in freeway rollover

Published 12:00 am Monday, December 24, 2007

By Ed Shannon, staff writer

Two people died when their 1997 Chevrolet Tahoe went off the icy surface of Interstate 90 just west of Austin at 9:15 p.m. Sunday, went into the median and rolled over, according to the Minnesota State Patrol.

The vehicle was westbound and near mile marker 175 just inside Freeborn County when the accident occurred, the accident report said.

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According to the accident report, the two victims of the accident were Leonard Kasten, 69, of Stewartville and Michelle Pederson, 35, of Albert Lea.

Driving on Sunday night was treacherous. Falling snow mixed with high winds created moments of low visibility for motorists and covered the painted lines of the highways. Winds at the Albert Lea airport were near 25 mph with gusts up to 37 mph, according the National Weather Service.

Many interstate travelers were stranded in Albert Lea on Sunday night. The west-to-east winds made I-35 especially difficult. For some there were no rooms in the inns &8212; a Christmas story if there ever was one.

An indication of the weekend weather problems came with the action by Gov. Tim Pawlenty to authorize the use of the National Guard Armory in Albert Lea to provide a refuge for stranded travelers.

Automobiles were in ditches all over the Albert Lea area. Tow trucks this morning still were pulling them out of the ditches. Law enforcement officers had exhausting shifts Sunday night as they hauled holiday travelers from the side of the roads into Albert Lea.