Bullet kills woman traveling on Highway 218 in Waterloo

A gunshot struck a car traveling early Sunday on Highway 218 in Waterloo, killing the driver and injuring a passenger, authorities said.

Waterloo police were responding to a car crash about 2:30 a.m. and discovered that a single bullet had pierced the southbound vehicle, killing the female driver and wounding a male passenger, who was transported first to a local hospital and then to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, police said in a news release. A third passenger was not injured.

The Waterloo Courier reported that the bullet came through the windshield and struck the driver in the neck. The injured passenger was hit in the face.

Authorities closed off the area, near the Greenhill Road exit ramp, for hours while they investigated. The highway has since reopened.

The names of the occupants had not yet been released, and no arrests had been announced.

Waterloo police asked anyone with information on the incident to contact them.