Head-on collision kills La Garita boy

LA GARITA — Eight-year-old Tristen Benns, second-grade student at Sargent Elementary, son of Josiah Benns of La Garita, was killed when two cars collided near Fairplay on Friday evening.

A southbound Toyota Tacoma drifted into the opposite lane of traffic while on Highway 285’s Red Hill Pass and crashed head-on into a Hyundai Tucson.

The force of impact caused the Toyota to flip multiple times, landing on the driver’s side, while the Hyundai ran into a guardrail.

The child was one of the passengers in the Hyundai and died at the scene.

State Patrol said the driver of the Toyota, identified as 56-year-old Shawn McGuire of Alma, suffered serious injuries and was airlifted to a hospital in the Denver metro.

The driver and surviving passenger in the Hyundai, both adults, were transported to Summit County Medical Center.

State Patrol said the passengers’ injuries were serious, while the driver’s were minor.

Tristen Benns was traveling to Denver with his mother to visit over the holidays.

When their vehicle approached Red Hill Pass they were hit head-on by a man driving the truck that swerved into their lane.

The driver is in critical condition in a Denver hospital.

The investigation into the accident by CSP is ongoing.

Report courtesy of the KKTV 11 News website and from Valley Publishing staff reports.