Two former longtime Powell residents suffered fatal injuries in a Feb. 19 crash near Bear Lake, Idaho, after their stopped vehicle was hit by a semi truck.

Ralph and Nora Lee Onstine, both 85, were taken to a local hospital, but Ralph died that day and Nora Lee the following day, according to a report from the Idaho State Police.

Police opened an investigation in the wake of the three-vehicle crash.

Ralph Onstine was a 1958 graduate of Powell High School and grew up working on a dairy farm and growing sugar beets, according to his obituary. He served in the U.S. Navy, graduated from the University of Wyoming, and then spent much of his career in Arizona with his first wife Loree. After retirement, he moved to McCammon, Idaho, and married Nora Lee in 2003.

Nora Lee was born and raised in Powell. She started Northwest College at the age of 53, earning an associate’s degree there and being honored as the Outstanding Student of the Year. She went on to earn a bachelor’s in speech pathology and a double master’s degree in family and educational counseling at Idaho State University.

“Nora Lee then spent many years at Idaho State University, where she found immense joy in mentoring and working with students, helping them grow their love for learning,” her obituary says.

It adds that the bond between Nora Lee and Ralph was “rooted in faith and service.”

A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 15, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at 1026 Ave. E. Family will visit with friends an hour prior to the service. Interment will follow the service at Crown Hill Cemetery, with a reception at the Powell fire hall.

According to the Idaho Highway Patrol report, a 2017 Kenworth driven by a 39-year-old man with a 49-year-old female passenger, both from Port Orchard, Washington, had stopped on U.S. Highway 30 while waiting for a crash to be cleared. A 2018 Lincoln MKC driven by the Onstines, from Georgetown, Idaho, was stopped behind the Kenworth when a white 2019 freightliner — driven by a 42-year-old man from Las Vegas — failed to yield. The Freightliner collided with the Lincoln, pushing the vehicle into the left shoulder. It then hit the Kenworth’s trailer before coming to a rest.

The highway was closed for approximately 10 hours and involved responses by the Idaho patrol, the Idaho Transportation Department, Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Bear Lake Fire Department, Caribou County Sheriff’s Office and Soda Springs Medical.