Ronald Huebner loved the open road, but a routine Thursday afternoon ride through Fargo ended in absolute heartbreak. The 60-year-old Mahnomen resident was cruising westbound on Main Avenue aboard his 2007 Harley-Davidson when disaster struck at the intersection of University Drive. Just after 3:20 p.m., a split-second sequence of events turned a rainy afternoon into a fatal chain-reaction crash.
Light rain had been falling across the area, leaving the asphalt wet and slick as traffic moved through the busy city corridor. Huebner approached the traffic light at University Drive, but for reasons investigators are still trying to pin down, his motorcycle failed to come to a stop for the red light.
Crossing into the intersection, the Harley slammed into the rear of a southbound 2023 Subaru Ascent. The SUV was being driven by 53-year-old Kirsten Barton of Fargo, who was traveling with 67-year-old passenger Laura Barton, visiting from Vacaville, California. The force of the initial crash was immediate and violent.
The impact threw Huebner clear off his bike and directly into the path of oncoming traffic. Before anyone could react, he was struck by a passing 2023 Ford F-150 pickup truck driven by 23-year-old Dylan Kangas of Fargo.
Meanwhile, the riderless Harley-Davidson kept sliding across the wet road surface. The motorcycle eventually collided with a third vehicle, a 2006 Ford Fusion driven by 20-year-old Sarah Delgado, also of Fargo. Within seconds, four vehicles lay scattered across the intersection in a scene of total chaos.
First responders rushed to the scene and found Huebner critically injured. Despite wearing his helmet at the time of the wreck, the physical toll of the multiple impacts proved devastating. Paramedics transported him straight to Sanford Medical Center, where doctors worked to save him, but he ultimately succumbed to his injuries later that afternoon.
Miraculously, none of the other drivers or passengers involved in the pileup suffered physical injuries. Authorities noted that everyone inside the surrounding cars had their seat belts securely fastened when the crashes occurred.
Back home in Mahnomen, news of Huebner’s sudden death sent shockwaves through the small Minnesota community. Friends, family, and neighbors now find themselves grieving a beloved local whose life was cut short in a flash on a rainy North Dakota street. The North Dakota Highway Patrol remains on the case, working to piece together every detail of what went wrong.
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