Vinton, Iowa (June 19, 1977) – Two Vinton residents lost their lives early Sunday morning in a grinding, two-car T-bone crash at the intersection of Highway 101 and County E-16, just north of the Dudgeon Area bridge.
Dennis Dean Carter, 27, was dead on arrival at Virginia Gay Hospital in Vinton and Brian Leon Walker, 17, died en route to University Hospitals in Iowa City.
Kyle Gingrich, 12, a passenger in Carter’s automobile, was transferred Sunday afternoon to University Hospitals where he was listed in serious condition.
Carter, driving a 1969 Chevrolet station wagon, was southbound on 101 when his car was struck broadside by a 1969 Chevrolet driven by Walker. Walker was driving west on E16 when he apparently ran through a stop sign, hitting Carter on the driver’s side.
Both cars went down an embankment on the west side of Highway 101 and the Carter vehicle came to rest on it’s top. Both Carter and Gingrich were wearing seat belts during the collision. The Gingrich youth was freed from the wreck, but it took medical and sheriff’s officials about an hour to free Carter.
Carter died of chest injuries while Walker died of head injuries.
Carter and Gingrich were returning from Fairbank where Gingrich had driven a quarter midget owned by Carter. Carter was president of International Speedways, promoter of quarter midget races throughout the state. He was employed at Hawkeye Racing News in Vinton.
Carter’s quarter midget, which was on a carrier atop his station wagon, was thrown 150 feet from the vehicle during impact.
Walker would have been a senior at Washington High School this fall.
Carter came to Hawkeye Racing News in 1970 out of Marshalltown Junior college and was instrumental in setting up many of the newspaper’s policies. He left in 1971 to enroll in the University of Northern Iowa. In 1972 he worked part-time while attending college. In 1973 he received his BS degree and took over the role of editor, a position he held until 1974.
In 1975 he asked to be transferred to the advertising managership. In September of 1976, he started Hawkeye Printing Co., in Waterloo, moving the operation to Vinton in December. Since then, he worked with Hawkeye Racing News in an advisory role and chief compositor.
He had recently sold the Hawkeye Printing company to Don Cryder of Ames.
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