Passenger dies after vehicle crashes into tree in western Nebraska

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – A woman was killed Monday in a rollover crash in rural Lincoln County, the sheriff’s office says.

The crash happened on a rural road north of Sutherland.

A Ford Explorer, driven by a 24-year-old man from Sutherland, was heading south on Prairie Trace Road “at a very high rate of speed.”

The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said the vehicle went airborne when it crossed the railroad tracks.

It landed and went airborne for a second time, leading the vehicle to roll over and crash into a tree.

The sheriff’s office said the vehicle’s roof was “completely crushed” into the passenger’s compartment.

The passenger, 22-year-old Jade Torres of Sutherland, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver, who suffered a fractured neck and shoulder blade and a collapsed lung, was taken to a hospital in North Platte.

He consented to a blood/alcohol test, which showed positive signs of alcohol use, according to the sheriff’s office.

As of Tuesday, the man was still being cared for at the hospital.  The sheriff’s office said he’ll be arrested at a later date.