ALTOONA, Iowa - A speeding pickup smashed into the back of a small car on I-80 Saturday night, killing one person and seriously injuring another, according to the Iowa State Patrol.
Drivers via social media reported traffic on westbound I-80 was at a standstill for more than an hour approaching the east mixmaster in Des Moines, while a helicopter ambulance landed on the highway and numerous emergency responders worked to save the victims of the crash.
The Iowa State Patrol crash report says 37-year-old Travis Gonzales of Bondurant was traveling at a high rate of speed when his pickup rear-ended the Ford Focus.
Both the truck and car ran into the ditch, and the State Patrol report says the car hit a tree. The driver of the car was killed, and the passenger was flown to Mercy Hospital for what was reported on dispatch audio as a Level 1 trauma.
Charges against Gonzales are pending.