Bus passengers were from the Rhinelander area

STAR JOURNAL REPORT

UPDATE: Driver killed in the accident was 26-year-old Kyle F. Thao of Merrill. A previous Lincoln County press release reported the driver was from Wausau.

A Lamer’s coach bus returning from a Milwaukee Brewers game early Saturday morning collided head-on with a vehicle driving south in the northbound lane of U.S. Hwy. 51, according to a Lincoln County Sheriff’s department press release.

The 26-year-old male driver of the vehicle, from Wausau, was pronounced dead at the scene. His name has not yet been released.

The collision reportedly happened around 3 a.m. near Co. Rd. Q in the town of Scott. A 911 emergency call came in reporting the wrong-way driver just seconds before a second 911 call reported the collision.

According to the press release, 29 passengers on the bus were from the Rhinelander area and were returning from the Milwaukee Brewers game. Several passengers complained of minor injuries but refused medical treatment. One passenger was transported to Ministry Good Samaritan Health Center where she was treated and released.

U.S. Hwy. 51 was closed for over five hours. The Marathon County Sheriff’s Office and Troopers from the Wisconsin State Patrol along with staff members of the Wisconsin DOT and Lincoln County Highway Department established and maintained a detour throughout the road closure.