Annette Beard

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A Missouri woman died Sunday as the result of injuries she received in a head-on collision Thursday afternoon north of Pea Ridge, according to Arkansas State Police.

Amber Ruthellen Epling, 30, of Washburn, Mo., was taken by helicopter ambulance to Washington Regional Medical Center in Fayetteville, after Pea Ridge Fire-EMS Department personnel worked for nearly an hour to free her from the crushed Mazda.

The collision happened around 1:30 p.m. Thursday northwest of Pea Ridge on Arkansas Highway 94, according to an Arkansas State Police report. The red 2006 Dodge Ram pickup truck was north bound on Arkansas 94 when it veered into the opposing lane and crashed head-on into the blue 2014 Mazda, state police said.

Epling, 30, of Washburn, Mo., was hospitalized and died from her injuries on Sunday, police said.

The Dodge's driver, 27-year-old Kenneth Cross of Pineville, Mo., was treated at a local hospital then booked into the Benton County Jail by Arkansas State Police. He was initially charged with felony second-degree battery. That charge was upgraded to negligent homicide after Epling died. Cross was also charged with DWI, careless driving, driving left of center, reckless driving and no driver's license. He was still incarcerated Monday in lieu of a $75,000 bond.

Conditions were reported as clear and dry at the time.