A soldier from Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks died in a head-on collision Friday on the Parks Highway between Willow and Talkeetna.
The collision at Mile 89 of the highway killed 20-year-old Pfc. Prentice Letroy Lewis-Rankin of Brewton, Alabama, according to a statement Monday from U.S. Army Alaska.
Lewis-Rankin, a cavalry scout assigned to the 5th Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, joined the Army in January 2018, USARAK said. He was assigned to Fort Wainwright in May 2018 after training at Fort Benning, Georgia.
Lewis-Rankin was pronounced dead at the scene of the collision Friday. A 2016 Toyota Camry struck a 2002 Chevrolet pickup, Alaska State Troopers said at the time. Three people were transported with what were described as non-life-threatening injuries.
The collision remained under investigation Monday. Troopers had no additional information.
Lt. Col. Aaron Mock, 5-1 Cavalry commander, in the statement Monday called Lewis-Rankin “hard working, trustworthy -- and an amazing friend and teammate to many throughout the Blackhawk Squadron.”