Western Wisconsin News Briefs: Wildfires force shutdown of highway near Tomah, causes fatal accident

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TOMAH - A 10-mile stretch of Wisconsin Highway 173 near Tomah was shut down for more than three hours Friday when smoke from a wildfire caused several crashes and one fatality.

The pileup started at about 8 a.m. in Monroe County when the smoke caused one vehicle to rear-end another near County Highway E-W. The two women drivers were standing in the road between their vehicles when a Ford pickup didn’t stop in time. Thirty-four year old Melissa Mundo was killed and 61 year old Suzanne Becker seriously injured.

Fire crews had been battling the wildfire at the Necedah State Wildlife Refuge for more than a day. It spread to a section of peat moss which was hard to extinguish.

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Church members continue the search for a missing Onalaska man who has been gone for more than a week. The official search was called off Friday afternoon. David Schroeder is a diabetic who needs his medication. He was last seen a week ago at the family home. Hundreds of acres were searched by dozens of officials and civilian volunteers. Members of Journey Lutheran Church say they are shifting their focus to distributing fliers. The 45-year old Schroeder had been scheduled to lead services this morning.

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Friends have established a reward fund for information leading to an arrest in the killing of a man and his son inside a La Crosse photography store. Fifty-six year old Paul Petras and his 19 year old son A.J. were killed September 15th. Petras’ wife says she opened the account when friends asked her about offering a reward. One contributor says he hopes the fund will grow to as much as $100,000. As of last Friday, more than six thousand dollars was being offered. The shooting took place inside May’s Photo in La Crosse.

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