Crime & Safety

Burnsville I-35W Crash Kills Pedestrian Thursday

Interstate 35W in Burnsville was shut down for almost three hours after a fatal crash early Thursday.

BURNSVILLE, MN — The Minnesota State Patrol (MSP) is investigating a fatal crash that occurred on northbound Interstate 35W at Highway 13 in Burnsville at 2:44 a.m. Thursday. A 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee was traveling northbound on I-35W at Highway 13 when a pedestrian entered the freeway from a right angle into the traffic lanes and was struck by the Jeep, according to MSP.

The pedestrian, Laura Lucille Lavine, 60, was killed. The driver of the Jeep has been identified as Laura Lee Koeppl, 40, from Burnsville. Alcohol was detected in Koeppl's system, but she was under the .08 limit, WCCO reported.

Authorities have not reported whether Koeppl was injured in the crash. Road conditions were wet, according to MSP. Burnsville police and fire assisted in the response.

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The freeway was shut down for almost three hours after the crash, according to the Star Tribune. Traffic became backed up from Highway 13 back to Burnsville Parkway.

Image via Minnesota Department of Transportation

Find out what's happening in Burnsvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

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