UPDATED: Identities Revealed in Linn County Crash That Killed Two

[UPDATE 10/6 2:45 p.m.] The Linn County Sheriff's Office has revealed more details about an accident that killed two Linn County residents Monday afternoon.

17-year-old Jaymin Rathje of Palo and 27-year-old Jacqueline Voelker of Palo were killed in Monday's crash near the corner of Covington Road and Gibney Road.

The Linn County Sheriff's Office says Rathje was driving a Chevy pickup northbound on Covington Road when he crossed the centerline, hitting a southbound semi, almost head-on. The semi and connected trailer continued southbound before flipping on its side, striking a northbound car believed to be driven by Jacqueline Voelker. Both the semi and car caught on fire, while the pickup ended up going into the east ditch.

The semi driver, 61-year-old Douglas Yates of Palo, was flown to University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City. He suffered serious injuries.

[ORIGINAL STORY] A Monday afternoon accident in Linn County has left two people dead.

According to a release from the Linn County Sheriff's Department, emergency personnel were called to a three-vehicle accident at Covington Road and Gibney Road, west of Cedar Rapids, at just before 2:30 p.m. Monday afternoon.

When Linn County Sheriff's Deputies arrived on the scene they found three vehicles, a semi, car, and pickup had been involved in a crash and the semi was on fire.

Other motorists were able to get the semi driver out of the vehicle. That driver was taken by Air Care to a nearby hospital.

The drivers of the other two vehicles were pronounced dead at the scene. Their names are being withheld pending notification of relatives. None of the three vehicles involved had any passengers.

Covington Road, north of Highway 100, was closed for about eight hours after the crash. According to the Linn County Sheriff's Office, it opened just before 10:30 p.m. Monday night. The investigation into what caused the crash continues.

Monday afternoon's crash was the second fatal accident in Linn County in 11 days. Thursday, September 25, 25-year-old Ricardo M. Hernandez of Garland, Texas was killed in a one-vehicle accident on I-380 northbound in Cedar Rapids, near 29th Street. That accident happened just before 3:30 p.m.