By Shay Lelonek / Asst. News Director

ST. AUGUSTA, Minn. — The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office says alcohol and drugs are believed to be factors in a single-car crash that injured a Dassel man.

Around 1 a.m. on Wednesday, December 18, 2024, the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office received a crash detection call. Initially dispatch didn’t hear anyone on the phone until a man eventually started screaming that he was stuck in the car and to call 911.

Deputies say 21-year-old Russel Parks was driving eastbound on County Road 136 when his vehicle drifted off the road, into a field, and drove through multiple trees where the truck came to rest on the driver’s side.

St. Augusta Rescue was able to get Parks to climb out of the passenger side door. He was transported to St. Cloud Hospital to be assessed for injuries.

The crash remains under investigation.