A 23-year-old Duluth man died earlier this week from injuries sustained in a weekend rollover crash on Interstate 35 near Esko.
Dancing Sky “Dan” Lance suffered multiple severe injuries Friday when he lost control of the 1989 Ford pickup he was driving, which rolled multiple times in the median.
Lance was not wearing his seatbelt, a Minnesota State Patrol news release said, and was thrown from the vehicle.
Lance had been on life support at Essentia Health-St. Mary’s Medical Center, where he died Monday.
“He was like a brother to me and my family,” said Brian Boder, a family friend and owner of Midwest Regional Construction, where Lance worked. “I can’t even explain how much of a loss it is.”
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Two passengers survived the crash, which occurred just after 6 p.m., when Lance’s pickup struck a snow drift on the highway, Boder said.
Lance has family in Kettle River and was originally from Alaska. A GoFundMe account has been established in Lance’s name to help his family with expenses.
“He was a great guy - super caring,” Boder said.
Boder described Lance as a dedicated worker who would use large portions of his paycheck to help support older family members.
“He’d get his butt up every day in 5 degree weather with windchill of 10 below - it didn’t matter,” Boder said. “There was never a moment I couldn’t count on Dan to come stick it out in the cold.”
Funeral arrangements are still pending.
