Editor’s note: This report is based on information submitted by the Oregon State Police. Not all crashes with fatalities may be included. The status of incidents might change after further investigation.
FRIDAY, SEPT. 18
• 10:02 p.m. — Troopers responded to a single-vehicle crash on Highway 126 near Walton in rural Lane County that took the lives of Max Timothy Hill, 48, of Newberg, and a 17-year-old boy. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that Hill was driving an eastbound Subaru Forester when, for unknown reasons, it left the roadway and struck a tree on the shoulder. Hill and his passenger, the 17-year-old, were pronounced deceased at the scene.
SATURDAY, SEPT. 19
• 4:46 p.m. — Troopers responded to a two-vehicle crash on Highway 42 in Myrtle Point that took the lives of James Edward Price, 32, of Myrtle Point; Genevieve Marie Huffaker, 20, of Coquille; and a 4-month-old girl. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that a Myrtle Point police officer was attempting to contact a 69-year-old Myrtle Point man who had tried to leave a local business several hours earlier without paying for merchandise. The man fled from the officer in a Land Rover LR3 and traveled eastbound on Highway 42 at a high rate of speed before losing control, crossing the center line and colliding head-on with Price’s westbound Subaru Forester, which was towing a jet ski. Price was pronounced deceased at the scene. Huffaker, a passenger in the Subaru, was transported to an area hospital, where she was pronounced deceased. The infant was transported to a Portland-area hospital, where she was pronounced deceased. The Land Rover’s driver was receiving treatment at a local hospital for serious injuries. The investigation is ongoing.
• 8:21 p.m. — Troopers responded to a vehicle-pedestrian crash on Highway 101 near Gleneden Beach that took the life of Nicholas Ryan Perkins, 41, of Portland. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that a southbound Chevrolet Colorado driven by a 61-year-old Lincoln City woman struck Perkins, who was in or near the lane of travel. OSP had also received calls reporting a person walking in the roadway. Perkins was then struck by two more vehicles, a southbound Mercedes Sprinter van driven by Gregory Lear Miller, 34, of Flagstaff, Arizona, and a northbound Toyota Sequoia driven by a 50-year-old Depoe Bay man. Perkins was declared deceased at the scene. None of the drivers reported injuries. Miller was stopped and detained south of the crash scene and taken into custody for failing to perform the duties of a driver.
SUNDAY, SEPT. 20
• 9:12 p.m. — Troopers responded to a two-vehicle crash on Highway 97 north of Modoc Point in Klamath County that took the life of David Wayne Slone, 27, of Chiloquin. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that Slone was driving a southbound Lincoln Navigator and attempted to pass another southbound vehicle when he struck head-on a northbound semitruck driven by a 33-year-old Yuba City, California, man. Slone was pronounced deceased at the scene. He is not believed to have been wearing a seatbelt. The semitruck’s driver was not injured. A passenger in the Lincoln was transported to a local hospital with minor injuries. Impairment and speed are believed to have been contributing factors.
THURSDAY, SEPT. 24
• 6:49 a.m. — Troopers responded to a two-vehicle crash on Interstate 84 near Arlington that seriously injured a 26-year-old Kennewick, Washington, passenger in a semitruck. OSP’s preliminary investigation indicated that an eastbound semi towing triple trailers, driven by Edwin Alexander Gomez, 32, of Pasco, Washington, left the lane of travel for an unknown reason, struck the center median and crossed into the westbound lanes. One of the trailers struck a westbound Ford Edge driven by a 51-year-old West Hills, California, driver, and the Ford rolled over. The semitruck and one trailer came to rest on top of the median. The other two trailers blocked the westbound lanes and the westbound on-ramp from Arlington, and the Ford came to rest beyond the guardrail on the right shoulder. The passenger was transported to an area hospital with serious injuries. Gomez and the Ford’s driver were transported with minor injuries. Gomez was arrested on charges of driving under the influence of intoxicants, reckless driving, recklessly endangering another person and fourth-degree assault. Once medically cleared, he was lodged at the Northern Oregon Regional Corrections Facility in The Dalles. The westbound lanes of I‑84 were impacted for approximately eight hours to facilitate the removal of hazardous materials, the on‑scene investigation, vehicle recovery, debris removal from the damaged median and repairs to the center median.