A baby was critically injured in a two-vehicle, head-on crash reported at 8:41 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 5, at the junction of Highway 371 and Crow Wing County Road 29, just south of Pequot Lakes, reported the Minnesota State Patrol.

The baby was taken to Essentia Health-St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Brainerd. The baby’s mother, Jessica Haataja, 26, Brainerd, also was injured and taken to the Brainerd hospital for non-life threatening injuries. Haataja was in fair condition Tuesday afternoon.

It was reported that Haataja was driving a Chevy Monte Carlo and traveling southbound on Highway 371 when she lost control on a curve, spun around and was hit by a northbound vehicle driven by Jason Parks, 39, Big Lake, who was not injured.

The Nisswa and Pequot Lakes police departments and the Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office assisted at the scene.

The head-on crash caused traffic to back up, which caused a rear-end crash near West Twin Lake that the Nisswa Police Department responded to. It was reported that there were no injuries.