Names released in double fatal crash near Britt
BRITT, Minn—Two people are dead after a head-on crash in St. Louis County. The crash happened on Thursday, Dec. 12, in Britt, about 14 miles northwest of Virginia, MN.
According to St. Louis County Sheriff Wade Rasch, they responded to the two-vehicle crash around 8:50 a.m. on the 9100 block of the Biss Road. A witness to the accident reported that a 76-year-old man was traveling eastbound on Biss Road while a 69-year-old man was traveling westbound.
Both were driving pickup trucks.
Authorities say the 76-year-old appeared to have drifted off to the shoulder, overcorrected, and continued across the centerline hitting the other vehicle.
Both drivers were pronounced dead at the scene. According to the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office, Frank Bertram Ratliff, 76, of Angora, MN and Steven Craig Shoden, 69, of Virginia, MN were killed in the crash.