Local News

A multiple vehicle crash in the northbound lanes of Interstate 5 at Southcenter this morning has slowed traffic traveling toward Seattle.

Washington State Patrol Sgt. Dan Atchison said that a dump truck, a semi and several cars were involved in the crash which is at the Interstate 405 interchange. He said the dump truck is in the roadway and the trailer of the semi jackknifed. Surprisingly, he said, there were no major injuries. It’s unclear what caused the accident.

The multiple vehicle crash blocked the right two lanes are blocked, leaving two lanes and the carpool lane open for commuters.

“It sounds like it is a pretty big mess. Everything is backed up,” Atchison said.

Bart Treece, a Department of Transportation (WSDOT) spokesman, said that motorists should expect the commute from Federal Way to Seattle to take more than 91 minutes. He said “on a good day” that same commute should take 45 minutes.

Around 8:30, WSDOT upped the commute time to 104 minutes from Federal Way to Seattle. The Federal Way to Bellevue commute was estimated at 122 minutes.

“It’s tough all over,” Treece said. “It’s nasty outside and we expect it to get nastier because the storm is moving in. “

The Snohomish County Medical Examiner has identified 51-year-old David C. Murray as the pedestrian who was killed Friday morning when he was struck by a pickup on Airport Way between Highway 99 and Admiralty Way in South Everett.

Murray was dead when deputies arrived at the scene of the incident at about 6 a.m. Friday, according to the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.

The Associated Press

OAKVILLE, Grays Harbor County — The Washington State Patrol says one person was killed and three injured in the collision between a car and pickup Monday night on the Highway 12 Mox-Chehalis bridge near Oakville in Grays Harbor County.

Yichun Xu, a 19-year-old community college student from China, entered not guilty pleas this morning to six charges, including vehicular homicide, for a Nov. 10 crash in Des Moines that led to the death of a 25-year-old woman days later at Harborview Medical Center.

Xu did not speak during his arraignment before King County Superior Court Judge Mary Roberts at the Norm Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent. Roberts denied a request from Xu’s defense attorney, Scott Leist, who didn’t want his client photographed by the news media.

Xu is also charged with three counts of vehicular assault and two counts of reckless endangerment, accused of driving through a residential neighborhood at freeway speeds, running a stop sign and slamming his newly-purchased Mercedes-Benz into a BMW driven by Brenda Gomez-Zapata, who was declared brain dead on Nov. 19, according to King County prosecutors.

Also injured were three of Gomez-Zapata’s young family members, who she had been driving to a birthday party, court records say.

Members of Gomez-Zapata’s family, including her mother and fiancé, were in the gallery for Xu’s court appearance. He remains jailed in lieu of $2 million bail.

UPDATE AT 6:13 P.M.: Turns out the Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy who was injured in a traffic accident this afternoon wasn’t involved in a hit-and-run collision, as originally reported.

The deputy, a 12-year law enforcement veteran, was driving north on Fourth Avenue West when he drove past a southbound silver BMW that was reportedly being driven recklessly, the Sheriff’s Office said.  The deputy made a U-turn and as he began to follow the BMW he lost control of his car, which rolled.

The deputy was taken to Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center with serious injuries.

The BMW continued south on Fourth Avenue West and struck a curb, leaving the car undriveable, the Sheriff’s Office said.  The driver fled on foot.

The BMW is believed to have been stolen, the Sheriff’s Office said.

ORIGINAL POST: A Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy was seriously injured this afternoon when the deputy’s patrol car was struck by a hit-and-run driver, the Sheriff’s Office said. The deputy’s injuries are not life-threatening.

The crash happened about 4:30 p.m. in front of Mariner High School in South Everett. The deputy’s car rolled over after the collision, the Sheriff’s Office says. The driver of the other vehicle, as well as a passenger, fled the scene.

Times news partner MyEverettNews.com is reporting that the vehicle that struck the deputy’s car was a BMW stolen out of Everett. The driver and passenger took off on foot.

We’ll update this post as soon as we have additional information.

A pedestrian was seriously hurt in South Seattle last night after being struck by a car on Rainier Avenue South.

A 30-year-old woman was crossing Rainier Avenue South at South Forest Street about 11 p.m.when she was struck by a 1994 Toyota Land Cruiser, according to Seattle police.  The woman suffered serious injuries and was taken to Harborview Medical Center, according to police. r.

Police are investigating whether the woman was crossing the road legally.

The 46-year-old driver of the Toyota was not hurt. Drugs or alcohol are not believed to be a factor in the crash, police said.

UPDATED at 10:20 a.m.: Wall Street between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue is back open, according to Seattle police.

ORIGINAL POST: A Belltown street remains closed this morning while Seattle police investigate a crash that sent four people to the hospital, including three with life-threatening injuries.

Police say that just before 6 a.m. an officer tried to pull over a Toyota pickup in Belltown after reportedly seeing people inside the truck throwing an ice scraper, rubber ball and other items out the window.

The truck driver refused to pull over, instead driving down alleys and increasing speed, said police spokesman Mark Jamieson.  While speeding down an alley, the truck collided with a minivan driving west in the 300 block of Wall Street. The impact threw the two vehicles into an apartment building, Jamieson said.

Firefighters had to cut three people from the truck, Jamieson said. The three were all transported to Harborview Medical Center with life-threatening injuries. The minivan driver was hospitalized with minor injuries.

Wall Street between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue will be closed to traffic while detectives conduct their investigation, police said.

The Associated Press

CLINTON, Mont. – A skittish dog that fled after a fatal head-on crash in western Montana has been spotted by residents of the Clinton area, but so far they’ve been unsuccessful in their efforts to catch Bella and return her to her owners in Seattle.

Bella fled early on Aug. 5 after a wrong-way driver collided with a car on Interstate 90 west of Missoula, killing 8-year-old Jacob Gamble of Seattle and injuring his brother, his mother and her partner.

Family members say the 2-year-old, old, black, pointy-eared dog, is very special to Eli.

Dani Curliss of Clinton tells the Missoulian that Eli’s family sent several of Bella’s toys to Montana to help lure her into a humane trap.

Curliss asks that anyone who spots Bella call 406-241-0174, and not try to catch the dog.

UPDATE, 8:25 p.m. | The driver of the pickup, a 2007 Toyota Tundra, was involved in an earlier hit-and-run collision on the 4000 block of Aurora Avenue North, according to Seattle police.

In the earlier incident, the victim of the hit-and-run called 911 at 12:27 p.m. to report the pickup had hit three vehicles before driving away.

About an hour later, at 1:37 p.m., the pickup hit the SUV in the University District on Northeast 50th, police say.

Seattle police spokesman Jeff Kappel said the pickup driver showed signs of impairment, and officers drew blood. No citations were issued, pending further investigation.

EARLIER POST | Two men were taken to the hospital after a traffic collision at the intersection of 15th Avenue Northeast and Northeast 50th Street this afternoon.

Seattle Fire Department spokesman Kyle Moore said first responders were called to the intersection after a small SUV and a pickup collided. The SUV was on its side and the driver of that vehicle was trapped inside, said Moore. That man was extricated through the back window and transported to Harborview Medical Center in stable condition.

The driver of the pickup, a man in his early 40s, was evaluated by paramedics and taken by medics to Harborview in serious condition.

Seattle Police did not immediately return calls seeking information but are reported to be investigating the cause of the accident. The accident has caused traffic slowdowns in the area.