A Hamlin teen died and three other people were injured during a near head-on collision Wednesday night in Audubon County. The Iowa State Patrol says 17-year old Kristopher George Crawley, who was wearing a seatbelt, died at the Cass County Memorial Hospital, in Atlantic following the crash, which happened at around 11:25-p.m on Highway 71, just north of Brayton.

Officials say the teen was a passenger in a 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee that was traveling north on Highway 71, when it collided near the centerline of the road with a southbound 2006 Chevy pickup.  After the crash, both vehicles came to rest in the west ditch.

Injured in the crash, was the driver of the SUV, 22-year old Jason Robert Rattenborg, of Audubon, and two persons in the pickup, including the driver, 55-year old Kendall Lee Ware, of Lineville, and 30-year old Mark Anthony Piearson, of Leon.  Two of the injured were taken to the Cass County Memorial Hospital, the other two were transported to the Audubon County Memorial Hospital, each was taken by Exira Rescue.

The accident remains under investigation.

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County report the arrest Wednesday evening, of a Villisca man on an assault charge. 27-year old William Joseph Pokorny was charged with Simple Domestic assault, after deputies responded to a reported incident in the 100 block of North 5th Avenue in Villisca, at around 7:10-p.m., Wednesday.

Pokorny was booked into the Montgomery County Jail in Red Oak, where he was being held on $300 bond.

Fire officials in Council Bluffs have released the name of an elderly Council Bluffs woman who died following a house fire Wednesday afternoon. Chief Alan Byers says 77-year old Yon-Sook Kim was overcome by smoke, and died at Mercy Hospital in Council Bluffs. Byers says firefighters responded to 917 Spruce St. at around 1:17 p.m, after a neighbor called to report smoke coming from an attic vent. A utility worker on his way to a job site also called 9-1-1 when he saw heavy smoke coming from a front window of the home. Police officers arrived on the scene and kicked in the door, but were unable to enter the home due to the intense smoke.

Firefighters found the woman unconscious, in her kitchen.  A preliminary investigation indicates an accidental cooking fire likely caused the blaze. Byers says the amount of actual fire damage to the structure was limited to the hall & kitchen area, with heavy smoke damage throughout the rest of the residence. He says also, there were no working smoke detectors in the home.

An autopsy was sheduled to be performed on Kim’s body today (Thursday), at the State Medical Examiner’s office in Ankeny. The results of the autopsy will likely be released in 2-to 3-days.