Update: Rice Man, Girl Involved in Fatal Wrong Way Collision

OAKDALE (WJON News) -- The Minnesota State Patrol says a man from Rice and a three-year-old girl from Rice were involved in that fatal wrong-way head-on collision in Washington County.

The Minnesota State Patrol says the incident happened at about 2:30 a.m. Thursday on Interstate 694 in Oakdale in the east metro.

Troopers say a Toyota Carolla was going south in the northbound left lane when it crashed into a Pontiac Vibe.  The Pontiac spun out and hit a Mercedes Benz Sprinter van.

The driver of the Pontiac - 32-year-old Alexander Ripka of Rice - was ejected from his vehicle and died.  Three-year-old Nevaeh Ripka of Rice was taken to Gillette Children's Hospital with life-threatening injuries.

The wrong-way driver - 28-year-old William Flores-Zamora of St. Paul - had to be extricated from the Toyota and also died.

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The driver of the Sprinter van - a 35-year-old man from Buffalo, New York -was taken to Regions Hospital with minor injuries.

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