By Lori Ehde
The Adrian and Rushmore communities are mourning the loss of two young girls who died in a one-vehicle rollover Wednesday, July 31, near Lismore.
According to information from the Nobles County Sheriff's Department, emergency crews responded to a 911 call at 3:42 p.m. on 190th Street about three-quarters of a mile west of Durfee Avenue.
There were five juvenile girls in the van, which had rolled and then burned.
Killed in the accident were Christine Anne Talyer, 15, daughter of Tim and Deb Taylor, rural Adrian, and Bethany Anne Feit, 12, daughter of David and Chris Feit, rural Rushmore.
Also in the vehicle were Christine's sisters, Katherine Taylor, 11, and Alexandra Taylor, 16, who was driving. The other passenger was Melissa Jo Weidert, 12, of Lismore.
The two victims were pronounced dead at the scene, and the other three were taken to Luverne Community Hospital.
Weidert was airlifted to Sioux Falls, and has since been released.
The accident remains under investigation, but Alexandra spoke about the accident at her sister's funeral.
She said after the van rolled, she was able to run for help. She said Bethany had been unresponsive, but that her sister was trapped in the vehicle and they were unable to free her before the van burned.
According to the girls' obituaries, they were both students in the Adrian School District.
Feit would have been a seventh-grader and was involved in band and cheerleading.
Taylor would have been in the ninth grade in Adrian High School and "loved her special needs classmates and teachers."