Minor injury in Hwy. 93 rollover

ST. IGNATIUS — A California man sustained minor injuries Saturday afternoon from a one-vehicle accident that law enforcement officials say could have been worse.

The 76-year-old man was headed south on U.S. Highway 93 at approximately 2:30 p.m. when he drifted into the right side of the lane. According to law enforcement, he then tried to compensate by steering his 2011 Chevy Suburban back to the correct side. Instead, he ended up flipping his vehicle.

Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Jim Sanderson said the car rolled at least two times before coming to rest on its wheels near the intersection of Lemery Rd.

The driver was transported to St. Luke’s community hospital in Ronan. He has since been released.

Also in the car was a 75-year-old female passenger, also from California, who was not injured.

Sanderson said that both the man and the woman were wearing seatbelts; the car’s side airbags may have also lessened the severity of the crash, Sanderson said.

According to him, the investigation is ongoing.

“Charges are pending,” Sanderson said. “It appears, however, that a medical condition may have played some part in it.”

He said that weather was not a factor in this accident to which Mission Ambulance, The Lake County Sheriff’s Department and the Mission Police Department responded.