Laurel Wicks Obituary: Cavour woman died in Vernon County crash

Laurel Wicks Obituary: 47-year-old Laurel Elizabeth Wicks of Cavour, South Dakota, died in a two-vehicle crash in Vernon County on 8 Dec.

Vernon County Sheriff Roy Torgerson reports on Friday afternoon, December 8, 2023, at approximately 2:45 PM, the Sheriff’s Office 9-1-1 Dispatch Center was notified of a two-vehicle crash, on State Highway 35, near Mohawk Valley Road, rural Stoddard, WI, in the town of Bergen.

Laurel Elizabeth Wicks, age 47, of Cavour, SD, formerly of La Crosse, WI, was operating a 2005 Honda Pilot northbound on State Highway 35 and collided with the rear of a large dump truck operated by Bobby E. Bendel, age 59, of La Crosse, WI.

The dump truck was stopped on the highway signaling a left turn into a private driveway yielding to an oncoming, southbound vehicle.

The initial point of contact on the Wicks vehicle was the left front corner impacting the right rear corner of the dump truck. The Wicks vehicle sustained severe damage on the entire left side of the vehicle entrapping Wicks, the lone occupant, inside the vehicle. There were no signs of life and Laurel Wicks was pronounced dead at the scene by Vernon County Coroner Betty Nigh.

A portion of State Highway 35, including the intersection of Mohawk Valley Road, was closed for about three hours.