Woman dead, man arrested after UTV crash near Mapleton

Authorities say alcohol may have played a role in a UTV crash that led to a woman’s death Thursday night near Mapleton.

The Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Office says deputies responded to the area of County Road 7 and 105th Street around 11:40 p.m. for a report of a woman trapped under a UTV.

Mapleton police were first at the scene and found 59-year-old Susan Marie Quiram, from Elysian, trapped under the machine and already dead.

The sheriff’s office says the 51-year-old Mapleton man at the scene had been driving the UTV when it went off a deep washout, causing it to roll. Quiram wasn’t belted, and was tossed from the UTV, which then landed on her.

The man was arrested but hasn’t yet been formally charged.

The sheriff’s office says alcohol is believed to have contributed to the crash, which remains under investigation.