Local man dies in wreck

Jamie Doran

Valley Press

A local man was killed Thursday evening at around 7:00 when he was ejected from his car due to an accident.

Tom Kunzer, owner of Kunzer Electric in Plains, was driving west bound on Highway 200 just west of Henry Creek Road in Paradise when he lost control of his vehicle, according to Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Steve Gaston.

Gaston, the responding and investigating officer, said Kunzer drifted onto the shoulder and then over corrected. He crossed both lanes of traffic and then hit a burn on the south shoulder.

His vehicle hit some trees and Kunzer, who was not wearing his seat belt, was ejected from the vehicle. The car continued up a hill until it came to rest on its side.

Kunzer was pronounced dead at the scene, Gaston said and Montana Highway Patrol is still investigating the accident.

“We’re still investigating what happened,” Gaston said. “The facts involved in the crash have not yet been positively determined.”

As with any accident that causes a fatality, drug and alcohol screening will be done to determine whether or not they were a factor in the cause of the accident.