One Dies, Another Injured in Egg Harbor Crash

One person died, and another was flown to Green Bay with injuries sustained in a one-car crash in Egg Harbor Tuesday night. 

As of deadline time for this issue of the Peninsula Pulse, no names were available while the Door County Sheriff’s Office worked on officially identifying the deceased and notifying the next of kin and relatives of the survivor. Chief Deputy Pat McCarty said he also couldn’t say at this stage of the investigation whether either or both were local residents.

The crash occurred at 8:57 pm on Heritage Lake Road, just north of the intersection of County E in the Town of Egg Harbor. 

According to the statement issued by the Sheriff’s Office, a Door County Sheriff’s Office deputy, first on the scene at 9:02 pm, discovered a 2002 Dodge pickup truck fully engulfed in fire. One of the vehicle’s occupants was lying outside the truck. The deputy began to tend to the individual when a series of small explosions occurred. The deputy moved the individual to a safe location away from the burning vehicle and began to render aid.

The Egg Harbor Fire Department arrived at the scene at 9:07 pm and extinguished the fire. At that time, a second occupant was found deceased inside the vehicle. The investigation had not yet revealed which of the two had been driving.

The survivor was transported from the scene by ambulance, then flown by helicopter to a Green Bay hospital. The Brown County Medical Examiner’s Office was summoned to the scene to investigate the death.

The preliminary investigation indicated that the truck was traveling northbound on Heritage Lake Road when the operator lost control of the vehicle. The truck entered the west ditch, where it struck a large tree and then a utility pole before coming to rest.

Crash-reconstruction specialists from the Wisconsin State Patrol’s Crash Reconstruction Unit are assisting the Door County Sheriff’s Office in determining the dynamics of the vehicle crash. McCarty said by phone that based on those preliminary determinations, alcohol and speed were believed to be contributing factors, and the vehicle likely crossed County E on Heritage Lake Road without stopping at the stop sign. 

However, “that’s ultimately what the reconstruction expert will be able to tell us,” he said.

The crash remains under investigation, and no other information is being released at this time.

The Egg Harbor first responders, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Door County Emergency Services also responded to the crash.