A Prairie City man has been identified as the man killed in a  crash on Highway 163 in Jasper County.

50-year-old Rex Chickering was driving a van that slammed into the back of a slow-moving pickup pulling farm machinery Chickerinjg died at the scene.

The driver of the pickup, 53-year-old Curtis Kaisand of Monroe, was injured and taken by ambulance to a hospital in Pella. The crash happened around 8 a.m. in the eastbound lanes and bright conditions may’ve been a factor.

Sgt. Nathan Ludwig adds that shortly after that crash, an Iowa State Patrol car was blasted by a passing motorist. The Patrol cruiser was parked on the side of the highway with its lights flashing. It was NOT occupied at the time.

Charges are pending against the driver of the semi, according to Ludwig.