Teen dies after being struck by minivan near Columbia Falls

A minivan struck and killed a 15-year-old girl who was walking along a road northwest of Columbia Falls, the Montana Highway Patrol said Friday.

The victim was walking westbound on the edge of Tamarack Lane at about 9:40 p.m. Thursday when she was truck by a westbound minivan and was knocked into a ditch.

A 37-year-old Whitefish woman driving the car left the scene, but was later located by law enforcement, the patrol said.

The girl was taken to the hospital in Kalispell where she died of her injuries. Her name has not been released.

Alcohol is a suspected factor in the crash, the patrol said.

A 37-year-old woman was booked into the Flathead County Detention Center on Friday on suspicion of vehicular homicide while under the influence, according to jail records.