Driver, 15, is one of two killed in Dakota County crash as he tried to pass truck

A teenage driver trying to pass a truck in a no-passing zone on a Dakota County road caused a head-on crash that killed him and the other motorist, officials said Tuesday.

The collision occurred about 3:30 p.m. Monday on 160th Street W. near Biscayne Avenue in Rosemount, the Sheriff’s Office said.

The drivers who died were identified by the Sheriff’s Office as David Rosas, 15, of Rosemount and Dennis Dahlstrom, 81, of Champaign, Ill. His wife, 78-year-old Sandra Dahlstrom, was critically injured, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Rosas was his vehicle’s only occupant, Sheriff Joe Leko said. In Minnesota, a 15-year-old can drive with an instruction permit but must be accompanied by a licensed driver who is at least 21 years old. Leko said there’s no indication Rosas had been granted an exception to drive unaccompanied for farm-related duties.

According to the Sheriff’s Office:

Rosas was driving his car east on 160th behind a semitrailer truck, then he “pulled into the westbound lane in a no-passing zone in an attempt to pass,” a Sheriff’s Office statement read.

Witnesses told law enforcement that Dennis Dahlstrom, heading west in an SUV, and Rosas each swerved onto the right-hand shoulder at the same time and collided.

Emergency responders declared both drivers dead at the scene. Sandra Dahlstrom was hospitalized with critical injuries.

“In this tragedy, there were several heroic citizens that stopped to render aid to the victims before first responders arrived,” Leko said in a statement.

In an online fundraiser begun to help the Rosas family with funeral expenses, David Rosas was described as “full of life and [who] loved playing the guitar and drums, praising God. H was a wonderful son, brother, uncle.”