SEATTLE — A woman involved in a multi-vehicle collision along Interstate 5 near Northgate early Thursday morning died at the hospital from her injuries, according to the Washington State Patrol (WSP).
Officials said a 29-year-old woman from Everett was ejected from her vehicle in the crash. She was not wearing a seat belt at the time, according to a report.
The WSP said the driver accused of causing the crash was charged with DUI, vehicular assault and reckless driving.
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) first reported the crash south of Northeast 145th Street just before 1 a.m. Thursday. All lanes were closed for more than seven hours before reopening around 8:30 a.m.
WSP Sgt. TJ Johnson said at least four vehicles were involved in the crash, including a “very large box truck.”
WSP Trooper Rick Johnson said a vehicle came off an overpass and struck two vehicles on northbound I-5. The WSP said the causing driver was a 45-year-old male from Seattle.
A report indicated one of the vehicles drove off the intersection of NE 130th St and 5th Ave NE into the northbound lanes of I-5 when it landed on the front end of another vehicle. The second vehicle struck a third car, which rolled over and struck a fourth vehicle, according to the report. The passenger of the third car was partially ejected after the collision, the WSP said in a report.
The Seattle Fire Department said two vehicles overturned in the crash. Firefighters extricated a person from each of the overturned vehicles.
A spokesperson for Seattle Fire said three people – a man and two women – were taken to the hospital. The man and a woman were taken to the hospital in stable condition. The other woman, who was a passenger in one of the cars, was taken to the hospital in critical condition, Johnson said.
The driver of the vehicle that came off the overpass has non-life-threatening injuries, Trooper Johnson said.
Sgt. TJ Johnson said the crash was “another reminder of how dangerous drinking and driving can be.”
The WSDOT said vehicles were diverted off I-5 at Northgate during the closure.
Lives 'changed forever'
The crash on I-5 was one of three serious crashes overnight and into the morning that Washington State Patrol responded to in King County.
A suspected impaired driver died after crashing into a semi-truck on northbound SR 167 at SR 18 near Auburn. The vehicle went over the barrier, landing in the collector-distributor of eastbound SR 18. The driver was ejected and died at the scene.
On southbound I-405 near SR 520, one person died in a single-vehicle crash. The cause of that crash was still under investigation around 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 3.
Following the crashes, State Patrol Captain Ron Mead released a statement pointing out that at least two of the crashes could have been avoided, but "a poor choice on the part of a driver either while driving or leading up to their driving resulted in their death of themselves or the death of someone they didn't know."
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