(Creston) At approximately 11:50 a.m. on June 8, 2025, Union County Dispatch received multiple 911 calls reporting a reckless driver traveling eastbound, just past Highway 169 North. Due to the speed and direction of travel, Union County transferred the call to Clarke County.
Shortly after, Union County was informed that the suspect vehicle had been involved in an accident at Mile Marker 102 in Union County, where the vehicle had entered the Grand River.
According to the report, several third-party callers had managed to stop the vehicle on the side of the road. As they attempted to shift the car into park, the vehicle was accidentally put into reverse. The driver then lost consciousness, causing her foot to come off the brake. As a result, the vehicle began rolling backward down a hill.
Bystanders were unable to stop the vehicle before it entered the river. A Clarke County Deputy and first responders arrived on the scene and successfully removed the unconscious female driver, identified as 43-year-old San Juana Vega, from the vehicle before it became fully submerged.
Emergency personnel informed law enforcement as they were lifting Ms. Vega onto a gurney to transfer her to an ambulance. One of the medics noticed an odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from her person.
Ms. Vega remained unconscious during transport to Methodist Hospital in Des Moines where she was pronounced dead.
The investigation into the incident remains ongoing at this time.
