Corsica teen hurt in crash, not found for hours

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CORSICA — A Corsica girl suffered broken ribs and a punctured lung in a one-vehicle rollover crash early Friday morning on state Highway 44 about 13 miles east of Platte, and she apparently was not located until hours later.

According to South Dakota Highway Patrol Trooper Aaron Hanson, 17-year-old Kerri Baan Hofman apparently lost control of her vehicle when the passenger-side tires drifted off the road toward the south ditch. That caused her to swerve across the road and into the north ditch, where her vehicle crashed into a barbed-wire fence, launched into the air and rolled several times before coming to a rest on its roof.

The crash was reported at 7:18 a.m. by a passerby who contacted the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Hanson said. Authorities believe the crash may have occurred as many as six or seven hours earlier.

When the first officer arrived, Baan Hofman was found standing in a field north of where her vehicle was, Hanson said. She was transported by ambulance to a hospital in Platte and later taken by helicopter to Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls with serious but not life-threatening injuries.

Baan Hofman was wearing her seat belt when the crash occurred, Hanson said. Alcohol was found in the vehicle, but it is still unknown if Baan Hofman had consumed any, he added.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

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