Rochester Couple Injured in Suspected Impaired Driver Crash

Hampton, MN (KROC-AM News) - Two people from Rochester were injured in a four vehicle crash near the Twin Cities last night, and the State Patrol is indicating the driver who caused the chain reaction collision could face criminal charges. The State Patrol report says the incident was reported about 7 p.m. on Highway 52 at the junction with 200th street just north of Hampton.

It started when a northbound pickup pulling a trailer crashed into the back of a car, pushing it into the back of another car, and that car into the back of a third car where traffic had stopped due to a lane closure at a construction site. The Rochester residents, 60-year-old Avudaiappan Maran and 58-year-old Karpagam Maran, were in the first car that was hit by the pickup. The State Patrol says they were transported to Regions Hospital in St. Paul with non-life threatening injuries. No other injuries were reported.

The State Patrol report notes the driver of the pickup, a 58-year-old Rosemount man, never hit the brakes and is suspected of impairment due to drugs.

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