St. John’s Life Safety, Avon Fire and Rescue and the Stearns County Sheriff’s Offices responded to the report of a one-vehicle crash with injuries at 7:17 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 18. Initial reports were that the vehicle had crashed into a tree and the occupants were injured on Island Lake Road, 1/2 mile south of County Road 51 in Collegeville Township, Stearns County. Passengers Emily Bergen, 17 of Cold Spring, and Ingred Castro, 17 of Hamlin, Texas, were placed in neck braces and back-boarded by the Avon Fire and Rescue Department and transported by Gold Cross Ambulance to the St. Cloud Hospital emergency room. Both air bags were deployed and severe rear end damage to the vehicle was sustained. Driver of the vehicle, Jeremiah Moe, 18 of St. Joseph, was not injured in the crash. Moe said he was traveling north on Island Lake Road when he lost control of the Accord and entered the east ditch, facing south. The trunk of the vehicle struck the utility pole, causing the airbags to deploy and the vehicle to spin into the trees. Speed was a factor in the crash, and Moe was cited for careless driving.
