A high speed chase through three counties ended in a fatal crash in Story County early Wednesday. The Iowa State Patrol identified the name of the victim as 47 year old Paul Korkowski of St. Paul, Minnesota.
The incident began when a State Patrol trooper clocked a 1998 Ford Focus driven by Korkowski traveling 108 miles per hour on Interstate 35 at Highway 3 in Franklin County. The trooper attempted to make a traffic stop when the driver began driving erratically. A Hamilton County Sheriff’s Deputy deployed stop sticks at the 126 mile marker disabling the vehicle’s left front tire.
At that time, Korkowski turned off the vehicle’s headlights. The pursuit continued southbound on I-35 into Story County. Near the 116 mile marker, the Korkowski car crossed the median and was traveling southbound in the northbound lanes of the interstate. He passed several vehicles before colliding head on with a semi truck. Korkowski was pronounced dead at the accident scene. The semi driver was not injured. The accident remains under investigation.
Contributed by Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City