By Jo McMullen / KVSC reporter

A 22-year-old man from Belgrade died in an vehicle crash Thursday morning in Paynesville.

The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office was called just before 7 a.m. with a report of a single car crash with an unresponsive man at the crash site on County Road 195, just south of St. Martin and north of Paynesville.

The driver was trapped in his vehicle and was extricated from it by St. Martin Fire and Rescue. Rescue members began life saving measures and were assisted by Paynesville Ambulance. The man was pronounced dead after attempts to save him failed.

Authorities identified the driver as Cory Sturges. Their investigation showed he had been driving northbound on County Road 195 when his vehicle left the roadway and went in the ditch. The vehicle continued northbound and struck a driveway approach, and became airborne. The car then crashed into the unoccupied house located on County Road 195.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation. The Minnesota State Patrol assisted at the scene with reconstructing the crash scene. The exact time of the crash is unknown as the home was unoccupied and the crash was discovered by a passerby who called 911.