QUILCENE — A Port Angeles woman died shortly before midnight Sunday after her vehicle crashed into an auto shop while driving through the town of about 500 residents, the State Patrol said.
Dolores D. Chapman, 38, died at the crash site at 294752 U.S. Highway 101 about 25 miles south of Port Townsend.
Further information about Chapman was unavailable Monday.
A passenger in her 2005 Ford Escape, Christopher P. Carrozza, 39, of Kennesaw, Ga., was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center, the State Patrol said.
Satisfactory condition
Carrozza, who was not wearing a seat belt, was in satisfactory condition Monday afternoon following surgery, a hospital spokesman said.
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Sgt. Mark Apeland said Carrozza had a collapsed lung and a head injury following the crash, which was called in to 9-1-1 at 11:54 p.m. Sunday.
Sunny Allen said she was sitting on her porch facing Highway 101 in Quilcene at about midnight Sunday when she and her husband, Alex, saw a car speeding by “that had to be going 90” in the 30-mph zone, she said.
“A split second later, we hear a loud crash, so I called 9-1-1.”
When Allen went to the crash site a short distance away, Chapman’s Escape was leaning against a pillar of the auto shop, Allen said.
State Patrol spokesman Mark Hodgson said the State Patrol does not know how fast Chapman was going and that the crash remains under investigation.
According to the State Patrol, Chapman was southbound on U.S. Highway 101 near Center Road when her vehicle veered off the roadway to the right, striking the structural pillar of Mountain Mechanic auto shop.
Chapman’s car also struck an unoccupied vehicle parked at the shop before stopping.
The State Patrol said the roadway was closed for four hours.
Drugs or alcohol were not believed to be involved in the wreck.
Apeland said it had been raining in the Quilcene area Sunday afternoon but did not know if the roads were wet or if it was raining when the crash occurred.
Two Airlift Northwest medical helicopters landed at a U.S. Forest Service helipad two blocks west of the crash site to evacuate survivors, Apeland said.
John Holloway, the owner of Mountain Mechanic, said Monday he hopes to reopen today.
A pillar of the shop was damaged by the impact of the crash, Holloway said.
“We’re in the midst of getting everything cleaned up and removing the collateral damage and liability that’s still on the scene here,” he said Monday morning.
“It’s really unfortunate, especially for the people involved.”
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at [email protected].
