Full Breakdown
Fatal Crash Claims BCLUW Principal and Child in Dubuque County
8/11/2026, 4:21:29 AM
Incident Details and Casualties
Around 9:21 p.m. on Saturday night, emergency crews responded to a collision between a utility-terrain vehicle (UTV) and a car at the intersection of East Worthington Road and Comer Road in Dubuque County. The Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office reported that a 10-year-old child was declared dead at the scene. The sheriff’s office later confirmed that 33-year-old Joshua Tack, the junior- and senior-high school principal for the BCLUW Community School District, died from his injuries at Mercy One Hospital in Dubuque. Six additional occupants were transported to hospitals with injuries described as “serious to life-threatening,” including two passengers who were airlifted to an Iowa City facility, two taken to a local hospital, and the driver of the car, who sustained minor injuries. The crash remains under investigation.
Community and Official Responses
The BCLUW Community School District posted a statement on its official Facebook page expressing deep sadness over Tack’s death and asking the public to keep his wife Blake, their children, and the broader community in their thoughts and prayers. Dubuque County Sheriff Joe Kennedy reiterated that the investigation is ongoing and that authorities are working with local fire departments, EMS agencies, and the Peosta Police Department to determine the cause of the collision.
Background on Principal Joshua Tack
Josh Tack assumed the role of junior- and senior-high school principal for the BCLUW district in the fall of 2023. A native of Hudson, Iowa, he earned his undergraduate degree from Central College and completed a master’s in administration at Viterbo University in La Crosse, Wisconsin. His tenure was marked by efforts to strengthen community ties across the district’s service area, which includes the towns of Beaman, Conrad, Liscomb, Union, Whitten, and Marshalltown.
Ongoing Investigation and Safety Concerns
Law enforcement officials have not released a definitive cause for the crash, and the identities of the remaining injured parties have been withheld pending family notification. The multi-agency response—featuring the Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office, Peosta Police, Cascade EMS, Dyersville Bi-County Ambulance, Farley Fire Department, Epworth Fire and EMS, and Worthington Fire Department—highlights the coordinated effort required for serious rural-road incidents. Community leaders and school officials are urging motorists to exercise heightened caution at rural intersections while the investigation proceeds.
