Houston woman dead after crash Wednesday morning, patrol says

A Houston woman was involved in a fatal crash Wednesday morning after a crash west of Willow Springs, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said.

Leslie H. Franklin, 67, of Houston, was driving a 2019 Chevrolet on U.S. 60, five miles west of Willow Springs, when he left the right side of the road, struck an embankment and struck a tree, the patrol said.

Wanda L. Franklin, 63, of Houston, a passenger, was pronounced dead by Dr. Dana Kinney of Ozarks Healthcare at 8:42 a.m.

Next of kin have been informed, authorities said. This is the 13th death for Troop G, compared to 14 at the same time last year.

Neither was wearing any safety gear. The vehicle was totaled.

The investigation into the accident was Tpr. JJ Smith. The assistants were Tpr. Joshua M. Kenyon, Willow Springs Fire Department and Cabool Fire Department.