Editor’s note: This report is based on information submitted by the Oregon State Police. All crashes with fatalities may not be included. The status of incidents might change after further investigation.
WEDNESDAY, DEC. 31
• 5:37 p.m. — Troopers responded to a two-vehicle crash on Highway 20 in rural Harney County that took the life of Christopher Emanuel Cortez Morales, 25, of Terrebonne. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that Morales was driving a westbound Honda Accord when he lost control and entered the eastbound lane where it clipped an eastbound Audi A6 driven by a 53-year-old Bend woman. The collision caused the Honda to roll and eject Morales, who was not wearing a seatbelt. Morales was declared deceased at the scene. OSP reported that operator impairment was being considered as a primary factor of the crash.
SUNDAY, JAN. 4
• 10:07 a.m. — Troopers responded to a single-vehicle crash on Highway 31 southeast of La Pine in Klamath County that took the life of Randy Laverne Samples, 62, of Bend. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that a southbound Dodge Ram 1500 driven by a 56-year-old Bend man passed another vehicle in a passing lane before losing control and sliding off the roadway. The Dodge’s driver’s side tires caught in the ditch and the vehicle rolled before going airborne and coming to rest in a tree. Samples, a passenger, was declared deceased at the scene. The Dodge’s driver suffered serious injuries and was transported to an area hospital. Roadway conditions and speed were considered primary factors in the crash.
MONDAY, JAN. 5
• 4:02 a.m. — Troopers responded to a two-vehicle crash on Highway 97 south of Grass Valley that took the life of Kenneth Frank MacDonald, 64, of Bradenton, Florida. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that MacDonald was driving a northbound Honda HRV near Grass Valley when it left the lane of travel for an unknown reason. The Honda collided head-on with a southbound semitruck driven by a 32-year-old Willows, California, man. MacDonald was pronounced deceased at the scene.
• 4:17 a.m. — Troopers responded to a single-vehicle crash on Highway 140 west of Lakeview that took the life of Destiny Elizabeth Canaday, 30, of Bly. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that Canaday was driving a westbound Ford F-250 when she lost control and rolled multiple times in the ditch after passing another vehicle. Canaday, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected from the vehicle and declared deceased at the scene. Speed and roadway conditions were considered primary factors in the cause of the crash.
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 7
• 8:50 a.m. — Troopers responded to a single-vehicle crash on Highway 199 about 2 miles west of Wilderville in Josephine County that took the life of Teddie Dianne Tibbets, 47, of Selma. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that a northbound Toyota Tundra driven by a 52-year-old Eugene woman reportedly swerved to miss a deer in the roadway, lost control and rolled multiple times along the shoulder of the highway. The vehicle came to rest on its roof. Tibbets, a passenger, was declared deceased at the scene. The Toyota’s driver suffered minor injuries and was transported to an area hospital.
THURSDAY, JAN. 8
• 12:46 p.m. — Troopers responded to a single-vehicle crash on Interstate 205 in the Happy Valley vicinity that took the life of Jack Jay Lewis, 64, of Molalla. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that Lewis was driving a northbound Ford Aspire when it left the roadway for unknown reasons, struck an ODOT sign and rolled. Lewis, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was declared deceased at the scene.
• 1 p.m. — Troopers responded to a two-vehicle crash on Highway 26 in between Alder Creek and Brightwood in Clackamas County that took the life of Gary James Beebe, 55, of Prineville. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that a westbound Ford Escape driven by a 29-year-old Vancouver, Washington, man was passing Beebe’s westbound Ford F-250 in a passing lane when the F-250 merged into the Escape as it passed. The contact caused the F-250 to lose control, crash through a guardrail and roll down an embankment into trees. Beebe was declared deceased at the scene.