WILLOW SPRINGS – A 69-year-old South Wayne man was killed in a two-vehicle crash on State Highway 23 and Shortcut Road in the Town of Willow Springs.
Howard E. Detra, Jr., died after his 2005 Ford Explorer traveling north on State Highway 23 collided with a 2002 Chevrolet Cavalier driven by Jean A. Cleary, 83, of Darlington, that was traveling eastbound on Shortcut Road. Both vehicles then entered the ditch on the northeast corner of the intersection, where Detra’s vehicle overturned before coming to rest on its top.
Detra was freed from his vehicle by the Darlington Fire Department through the use of the Jaws of Life. Both drivers were transported by ambulance to Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County. Emergency Helicopter Transport was requested, but was unavailable due to weather conditions.
Detra was pronounced dead at the hospital as a result of injuries sustained in the crash. Cleary was treated for her injuries and later released.
The Darlington Fire Department, Rural Medical Ambulance Service, the Darlington Police Department, the Lafayette County Highway Department, the Mineral Point Fire Department, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Wisconsin State Patrol Crash Reconstruction Team assisted Lafayette County Sheriff’s Deputies at the scene.
This is the fifth Motor Vehicle Crash resulting in a fatality to occur on Lafayette County roadways in 2017.