1 dead after head-on crash in construction zone on western Wisconsin highway

HAUGEN, Wis. — Authorities in western Wisconsin say one person is dead and another seriously injured after a crash in a construction zone that shut down a highway for hours Wednesday evening.

The Barron County Sheriff's Office says deputies responded to a crash on U.S. Highway 53 a half-mile south of 28th Avenue at 5:23 p.m.

According to the initial investigation, a minivan had been passing other northbound vehicles in the wrong lane of traffic when it struck a southbound sedan towing a motorcycle trailer.

Due to construction, traffic was bidirectional in the northbound lanes of Highway 53 with delineator posts down the double-yellow center line, the sheriff's office says.

The driver of the sedan died while the minivan driver was transported by LifeLink to a nearby hospital for treatment of their injuries, authorities say.

The identity of the deceased will be released at a later time.

The crash is under investigation.