SUV Erupts In Flames After Crash Near Melrose

MELROSE TOWNSHIP (WJON News) -- No one was hurt after an SUV caught fire after a crash on Thursday afternoon. The Stearn County Sheriff's Office says they received a report about a crash with a vehicle on fire at about 3:40 p.m. at the intersection of County Road 17 and County Road 13 near Melrose.

Once on the scene, deputies found an SUV driven by 23-year-old Jose Montanez Botello of Sauk Centre fully engulfed in flames and in the ditch with the fire spreading into the surrounding area. Botello and two passengers in his vehicle, 23-year-old Guadalupe Botello Ambriz of Sauk Centre and 3-year-old Noah Montanez Botello, were all able to escape the vehicle without injury.

The Sheriff's Office says through its investigation and witness accounts, they were able to determine that an SUV being driven by 33-year-old Vivian Okutoyl of Grey Eagle was going east on County Road 17, failed to yield the right of way, and proceeded through the stop sign. She entered the intersection and pulled out in front of Botello, who was going north, and the two vehicles crashed. Okutoyl was also not hurt in the crash. The Melrose Police Department, Minnesota State Patrol, Melrose Fire Department, and Melrose Ambulance assisted at the scene.