GRAND FORKS — A bicyclist was injured after a collision with an SUV on a rural highway in Walsh County, North Dakota.

The incident occurred at 5:17 p.m. on State Highway 17, near Grafton.

According to a report from the North Dakota Highway Patrol, the collision involved Dennis Loewen, 67, of Park River, who was riding a bike, and a 2007 Suburban, driven by Brenden Erickson, 22, of Grafton.

The report said “Loewen was eastbound and made an abrupt maneuver and turned north toward the school near mile marker 119 on State Highway 17. Erickson was eastbound behind Loewen. When Loewen swerved into his lane, Erickson struck Loewen broadside. Loewen sustained severe injuries. Loewen was brought to Unity Hospital for treatment.”

The crash remains under investigation by the NDHP

Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under a byline of “staff.” Often, the “staff” byline is used when rewriting basic news briefs that originate from official sources, such as a city press release about a road closure, and which require little or no reporting. At times, this byline is used when a news story includes numerous authors or when the story is formed by aggregating previously reported news from various sources. If outside sources are used, it is noted within the story.

GRAFTON, ND — One Park River, North Dakota, man was seriously injured in a bicycle crash just after 5 p.m. on Monday, August 19.

Dennis Loewen, a 67-year-old from Park River, was biking east on State Highway 17 when he made an “abrupt maneuver” near mile marker 119 and began heading north, according to a release from the North Dakota Highway Patrol.

Meanwhile, 22-year-old Brenden Erickson from Grafton, N.D., was driving his Chevrolet Suburban eastward as well.

Erickson struck Loewen.

Loewen was transported to the hospital with severe injuries. Erickson was uninjured.

The crash remains under investigation, according to the release.

Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under a byline of “staff.” Often, the “staff” byline is used when rewriting basic news briefs that originate from official sources, such as a city press release about a road closure, and which require little or no reporting. At times, this byline is used when a news story includes numerous authors or when the story is formed by aggregating previously reported news from various sources. If outside sources are used, it is noted within the story.

REGENT, N.D. (KFYR) – There are 355 incorporated towns in North Dakota. A Nebraska man plans to visit them all. Seth Varner will finish his trip across the Peace Garden state later this week.

Varner’s camera roll is filled with thousands of photos of small-town attractions across North Dakota. He’s on a mission to visit all 355 incorporated towns in North Dakota.

“Some have single-digit populations,” said Varner. “And then you’ve got your Fargo, your Bismarck, your Grand Forks in the tens of thousands.”

Varner has photos of them all. He uses an old-school map to keep track of where he’s been and where he’s going.

“I divided the state into five reasonable trips,” he explained.

Then, he turns to Facebook for help planning each stop.

“I’ll get suggestions about everything from the museums, places to eat, like cool things to see and do or potential meetups and whatnot,” Varner said.

On this day, he’s visiting the southwestern North Dakota community of Regent. He’s snapped pictures of the town’s churches, parks, downtown and the big attractions, including the Enchanted Highway, the Enchanted Castle and the people he and his fiancé, Eliese Ueding, have met along the way.

“It’s been really, really cool so far. Everybody has been so kind and sweet. It’s wonderful,” said Ueding.

And it’s proof that ‘North Dakota nice’ is alive and well all across the Peace Garden state.

Varner will finish his North Dakota trip Thursday with a stop at the state Capitol.

Then he’ll head home to start working on a book about his adventures. He hopes to have that ready later this fall.

You can follow his progress on his Facebook page.

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