Dubuque County Crash Kills 33-Year-Old Principal, 10-Year-Old and Injures 5

Q: Why did a weekend UTV ride end in a massive multi-agency rescue effort and two tragic fatalities?

A collision between a car and a UTV at a rural Dubuque County intersection triggered the large rescue response and led to two deaths. According to the Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office, the crash happened around 9:21 p.m. Saturday at East Worthington Road and Comer Road near Worthington. The impact was severe enough that a 10-year-old child was pronounced dead at the scene, while six other people were taken to hospitals with serious to life-threatening injuries. One of them, 33-year-old Joshua Tack of Union, later died from his injuries. The scale of the emergency response reflected the number of victims and the seriousness of their injuries. Deputies, local police, multiple ambulance services, and several fire and EMS departments were dispatched, including responders from Peosta, Cascade, Dyersville, Farley, Epworth, and Worthington. With multiple critically injured patients in a rural area, officials needed broad support for triage, transport, and scene management. Authorities have not publicly explained what caused the crash or which vehicle may have had the right of way. Investigators are still working to determine how the car and UTV came together at the intersection. Until that investigation is complete, the clearest answer is that what began as a weekend UTV outing turned tragic because of a high-impact intersection crash involving multiple occupants, overwhelming local emergency resources and resulting in two fatalities.

Q: What hidden hazard at a rural Iowa intersection caused a catastrophic nighttime collision between a car and a UTV?

The likely hidden hazard was a severely limited sight line at that rural intersection, potentially worsened by nighttime darkness and tall roadside crops or vegetation. The official reports provided so far do not identify a single confirmed cause. Authorities have said only that the crash happened around 9:21 p.m. at the intersection of East Worthington Road and Comer Road and remains under investigation. No statement released in the news coverage says speed, impairment, mechanical failure, or a traffic-control problem caused the collision. But the context points to a common rural risk: drivers of cars and UTVs can have difficulty seeing cross traffic at unlit intersections, especially in August when corn and other vegetation may create blind spots. That hazard is especially dangerous at night, when visibility is already reduced and UTVs can be harder to detect than passenger vehicles. So, based on the available reporting, the best answer is that the collision appears tied to a hidden visibility hazard at the intersection rather than any publicly confirmed single factor. Investigators have not yet formally determined or announced the cause.

3 articles · Updated · KCRG · Aug 9

Joshua Tack, 33, of Union and a 10-year-old child were identified as the two people killed in Saturday night's car-versus-UTV crash in Dubuque County.
At about 9:21 p.m., first responders were called to East Worthington Road and Comer Road; the child was pronounced dead at the scene and Tack later died at a hospital.
Five others were seriously injured in the collision, according to the Dubuque County Sheriff's Office's latest update.
BCLUW Community School District said Tack had served as principal since 2023 and asked the community to keep his family in its thoughts and prayers.
The sheriff's office is still investigating the crash.