AUDUBON — A 16-year-old Audubon boy was killed Sunday, October 25, 2026, when a semi struck the rear of the farm tractor he was driving on U.S. Highway 71 in Audubon County.
The Iowa State Patrol identified the teenager as Tatum Eugene Christensen. The collision happened at approximately 11:47 a.m. south of 220th Street.
Christensen was driving a 1986 John Deere 4450 tractor pulling a trailer northbound on Highway 71. A northbound 2018 Freightliner Cascadia driven by Kenneth Lee Mohr, 46, of Audubon, collided with the rear of the tractor, according to the patrol.
Christensen was ejected and pronounced dead at the scene.
Mohr was injured and flown by LifeFlight for medical treatment. The patrol listed him as wearing a seat belt and indicated the restraint saved his life. Christensen was listed as not wearing a seat belt.
The report identifies the semi’s motor carrier as Duke Aerials Inc. of Atlantic. No hazardous materials were involved. Richter’s Towing removed both vehicles.
The preliminary report does not explain what led to the rear-end collision or list any charges. Audubon police, the Audubon County Sheriff’s Office and local firefighters assisted the Iowa State Patrol.
NorthIowaToday.com has covered other fatal collisions involving farm equipment, including a tractor-train crash in Worth County. Earlier this year, NIT also reported on a Hancock County semi crash that killed a Lone Rock man.
Iowa had recorded 231 traffic fatalities in 2026 as of October 23, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation’s latest available count checked for this story. That preliminary total predates Sunday’s collision.