2 dead, others injured when fiery crash sends vehicle into Minneapolis bus shelter

A fiery two-vehicle crash Monday morning in a Minneapolis neighborhood left two people dead, others injured and a Metro Transit bus shelter destroyed.

The collision occurred about 10:20 a.m. near the intersection of 26th and Emerson avenues N., police said.

Police said speed likely contributed to the crash, but they did not say which driver was speeding into the intersection, which is controlled by traffic signals. No arrests have been announced.

“This is a terrible crash that has impacted multiple families,” Police Chief Brian O’Hara said in a statement. “It’s heartbreaking and tragic that two people were killed and three others were injured in the blink of an eye.

“While the cause of this crash is still under investigation, I want to emphasize the importance for every driver to drive at safe speeds and stay hyper-focused and engaged while operating a motor vehicle.”

According to police:

A northbound vehicle on Emerson struck a vehicle heading east on 26th. The impact sent the eastbound vehicle into the bus shelter, where a 17-year-old boy waiting to be picked up for school was hit. He was taken to HCMC with noncritical injuries.

The two women in the eastbound vehicle died, one at the scene and the other at North Memorial Health Hospital.

The vehicle on Emerson was occupied by a man and a woman, and they were taken by emergency medical responders to a hospital with critical injuries.

Officials have yet to release the identities of any of the victims.

Lolo Samuelson told the Star Tribune she was walking to the store when she came upon the crash scene moments after impact.

She said one of the vehicles slammed into the shelter on the northeast corner, while the other ended up in a yard at the intersection. On the pavement was someone who was at the shelter when it was struck, she said.

Samuelson, 18, said she approached the shelter and saw a vehicle was on fire with one person inside “who wasn’t moving or anything like that. A lady, she was making noises, so I knew she was alive.”

Samuelson said she didn’t hesitate before going up to the burning vehicle.

“In that type of situation, you just want to make sure people are going to be OK,” she said. “Just give me a sign that you’re still responsive, that you’re still here.”