Two people were killed Friday during a single-vehicle crash east of Emerson, in Montgomery County. The Iowa State Patrol reports the driver of the car, 78-year old Gladys Bowen, of Imogene, and a passenger in the vehicle, 87-year old Hazel Hinkle, of Emerson, died in the crash which occurred on 200th Street (Old Highway 34), about three-quarters of a mile east of Emerson, near Avenue A.

Officials say the women were traveling eastbound, when for reasons unknown, the 1999 Lincoln Towncar they were in went out of control, entered a ditch and struck a concrete culvert and creek bank. The impact caused both women to be ejected out the right front door of the car. Neither was wearing a seat belt. Both women died at the scene. It’s not clear what time the crash occurred. The accident remains under investigation.