UPDATED: IGH Police Confirm Identities of Crash Victims, Investigation Into Cause Continues
The cause of the fatal crash involving a schoolbus and a passenger vehicle is still under investigation.
Update (Nov. 19, 3 p.m.) The Inver Grove Heights police department has released the names of everyone involved in Friday's fatal accident near the intersection of Highway 55 and Argenta Trail in Inver Grove Heights.
- Bus driver: 54-year-old Timothy Nelson of Eagan (uninjured)
- Vehicle driver: 70-year-old Elaine Clausen of Inver Grove Heights (deceased)
- Passenger: 11-year-old Laela Shawel of Inver Grove Heights (deceased)
- Passenger: 4-year-old Gion Clausen-Young of Inver Grove Heights (deceased)
The cause of the crash is still under investigation. The Minnesota State Patrol is assisting in the police investigation.
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(Nov. 18, 8:35 p.m.) The Star Tribune is reporting that Friday's crash between a school bus and a passenger vehicle took the lives of a 70-year-old woman and her two grandchildren.
The article names Elaine M. Clausen, 11-year-old Laela Clausen and five-year-old Gion Clausen as the victims of the crash, which took place Friday, Nov. 16, near the intersection of Highway 55 and Argenta Trail in Inver Grove Heights.
The article cites Clausen's coworker as the source of the information.
Inver Grove Heights police confirmed Friday, Nov. 16, that the driver of the schoolbus emerged from the scene uninjured.
However, police did say they will not release the names of the victims until the Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner confirms their identities.
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Editor's note: This article will be updated as soon as more information becomes available.
Diane Baum
2:31 am on Monday, November 19, 2012
so very sad. This is a corner/curve that needs to be marked 35 mph as it turns too quickly going north on Yankee Doodle. Yet it is 40 mph, in a curve that also reduces two lanes into one. People, PLEASE take caution in this area.....pay attention and do not become distracted!
Judy Hoffman-Lucero
10:29 am on Monday, November 19, 2012
Very sad! Elaine is a wonderful person & grandmother. She would never do anything to hurt anyone. She is a cautious and attentive driver. She is a caregiver for many people. This is a tragic accident.
Casandra Cooper
5:00 pm on Monday, November 19, 2012
I had the privilege of knowing Laela, And she was the sweetest girl anyone could ever meet... Rest In Peace Laela, I LOVE YOU!<3
Jeff Roberts
1:45 am on Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Thank you, Casandra. Well said.
scott Hamline
10:12 pm on Monday, November 19, 2012
I worked with Elaine she was a very nice person she new me and my dad lost some good people
Jeff Roberts
1:46 am on Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Thank you for your sentiments, Scott.