QUILCENE — A collision of two pickup trucks on Center Road took the life of a Toandos Peninsula man and sent a Quilcene man to a Seattle hospital.
George Howton, 70, was killed in the wreck 2 miles north of Quilcene at Milepost 12 at 4:24 p.m. Wednesday.
Gabriel Nieman, 22, was listed in satisfactory condition Thursday at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
It was unknown as of Thursday afternoon if Howton died in the crash or in the fire that broke out in his pickup after the wreck.
Traffic from Milepost 11 to Milepost 14 on Center Road was shut down from about 4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday, said Capt. Ben Stamper of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
He said the collision remains under investigation and that Nieman could be charged with negligent driving, an infraction.
“Negligence is what we feel it is at this time,” Stamper said, adding that crossing the centerline also is an infraction.
Howton died after a 1989 Ford three-quarter-ton pickup driven southbound by Nieman crossed the centerline and glanced against Howton’s 1984 three-quarter-ton GMC pickup, sending both vehicles into the northbound ditch, Stamper said.
Howton, who retired from All City Autobody & Towing of Port Townsend in 2008, was found dead inside the pickup after it burned from the collision, Stamper said.
Immediately after the wreck, witnesses said Howton appeared to be unconscious before his truck caught on fire, Stamper said.
“This wasn’t a Hollywood, vehicle-bursts-into-flames-type thing,” Stamper said.
“Passers-by were trying to determine if [Howton] was still showing signs of life when suddenly, the fire appeared and they had to back off.
“We suspect the fuel line had ruptured and made its way to hot exhaust and burst into flames.”
It appears both vehicles were going at or below the 55 mph speed limit on a fairly straight section of the road, Stamper said.
An eyewitness who was following Howton told authorities it did not appear that Nieman swerved or moved rapidly into Howton’s lane to avoid an animal or other road obstruction.
“It was not, per se, a bumper vs. bumper head-on,” Stamper said.
“Nieman impacted the left front fender and took that whole side, wiped out the whole side of the vehicle.
“There was massive structural damage.”
Stamper said Howton lived on the Toandos Peninsula, which is between Dabob Bay and Hood Canal. It is across Dabob Bay from Quilcene and extends south.
Nieman, a construction worker, had cuts and abrasion but did not appear to have any broken bones, said Chief Larry Karp of Quilcene-based Jefferson County Fire District No. 2.
Nieman did not appear to have been drinking and voluntarily took a blood test, Karp said.
“A deputy said he got right in [Nieman’s] face, and there was absolutely no indication that alcohol was involved,” he said.
Karp said emergency personnel were concerned about possible internal injuries to Nieman.
Nieman, a construction worker, was wearing a seat belt, Stamper said, adding that it was unknown Wednesday if Howton was wearing a seat belt.
The case was referred to the county Prosecuting Attorney-Coroner’s Office for a possible autopsy on Howton.
Howton’s and Nieman’s vehicles were towed to Port Townsend by All City Autobody & Towing, where Howton had worked as an auto-body worker since 2002 before he retired.
General Manager Jan Kemp recalled attending an anniversary party for Howton and his wife, Penni.
“George was a sweetheart,” Kemp said Thursday.
“He liked everybody, and everybody like George, and he loved animals.”
On Wednesday, Kemp heard the emergency call over a police scanner but did not know at the time it involved Howton.
She recalled hoping it wasn’t someone she knew.
“It’s just sad. It’s just sad,” she said.
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5060, or at pgottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.