A two-vehicle crash Thursday night in Swansea claimed the life of a 75-year-old woman and sent two children to the hospital, according to authorities.

St. Clair County authorities on Friday identified the woman killed in the wreck as Bobbie Laker. Two children in Laker’s vehicle also suffered injuries in the incident, Swansea police reported.

Authorities said Laker was driving on Morgan Street at about 7 p.m. Thursday, waiting to merge onto Illinois 161. She eventually pulled out in front of a vehicle heading east, causing a crash that propelled both vehicles into a nearby ditch.

Laker was transported to Memorial Hospital in Belleville, where she was pronounced dead, according to the St. Clair County Coroner’s Office. Her two passengers, children who were not publicly identified, also were treated for injuries caused by the wreck.

It’s unclear whether the other driver, whom authorities did not identify, was injured as well.

Steve Johnson, Swansea’s police chief, wrote on Facebook that another driver was arrested while authorities were investigating the wreck.

Johnson wrote that William B. Paulsell, 66, of Belleville, drove over a curb near the scene and was pulled over by an officer. Paulsell was arrested for driving under the influence, authorities said.

Johnson also offered thoughts on the fatal crash.

“This fatality could turn out to be just a momentary lapse of attention that turned fatal,” he wrote.

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