One person died and seven others, five children and two adults, were injured Saturday afternoon in a two-vehicle crash on an icy and snow-packed Highway 126E about seven miles south of the Highway 20 junction, Oregon State Police (OSP) reported.
Shortly after 2 p.m. on January 5, 30-year old Norman D. Good of Eugene lost control of his 2001 Isuzu Rodeo SUV as he traveled east on Highway 126E near milepost 7, Trooper April Lang said. The vehicle slid sideways and into the oncoming path of a pickup.
One person died and seven others were injured in this crash Saturday - OSP photo
The 2005 Chevy Colorado pickup’s driver, Antonio Rico-Sanchez, of Culver, was unable to avoid the SUV and crashed into its passenger side, OSP said. Both vehicles came to rest blocking the westbound lane.
Joshua Eugene Christensen, 28, of Veneta was riding in the right-front passenger seat of the Isuzu, and was pronounced dead at the scene by a doctor who came upon the accident, OSP reported.
Good, the driver of the Isuzu, and three other passengers – all children -- in his SUV were transported by ambulance to St. Charles Medical Center (SCMC) in Bend, the news release stated. The children were identified as Dante Good, 8; Devin Good, 6; and Kassie Good, 4.
The pickup’s driver was taken by a private party to the hospital in Bend. His passengers, six-year-old Brianna Stun and Yardley Rico, also six, were transported by ambulance to SCMC.
All persons involved were wearing appropriate safety restraints, and all injured persons reportedly received non-life threatening injuries.
The highway was closed for about two hours, and the accident remains under investigation by OSP Springfield and Bend offices, although troopers said speed did not appear to be a factor.