Seven dead on state roads on Memorial Day weekend

COLUMBIA, Missouri (KMIZ)

Seven people died on Missouri’s roads over Memorial Day weekend, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said Tuesday.

According to a press release, state police officers were called to 275 accidents between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Monday. Officers reported 161 injuries and 128 arrests for drunk driving.

Despite seven boating accidents with seven injuries, no one died on the water. Six were arrested for drunk boating.

The number of accidents and deaths has decreased compared to 2023, when 13 people died and 403 were injured in 990 road accidents.

One of the weekend’s traffic fatalities was 37-year-old Crystal Hooper of Monroe City. She died Sunday when her vehicle left the road on Highway 61 near Palmyra, struck an embankment and rolled over, police said.

One of the fatal crashes occurred on Highway 65 in Benton County and killed an 89-year-old man from Independence, Missouri.