PORT ANGELES — After further investigation, the State Patrol is referring a driver involved in a non-injury head-on collision Tuesday on U.S. Highway 101 near the Tumwater Truck Route for investigation of reckless driving.
The initial State Patrol report Tuesday afternoon was that the driver was under investigation for driving under intoxication (DUI).
The wreck blocked both directions of Highway 101 for about four hours beginning at 4 p.m. Tuesday.
The wreck’s cause remains under investigation, according to a State Patrol incident memo.
Kenneth A. Tobin, 32, of Port Angeles was released from the Clallam County jail at about 7:15 p.m. after being booked at 6:10 p.m. Tuesday.
The jail roster lists the booking charge as DUI-Alcohol, but Katherine Weatherwax, State Patrol spokesperson, wrote in a 7:30 p.m. Tuesday email, “The driver of unit 1 not impaired. Referring charges for reckless driving.”
U.S. Highway 101 was shut down for about four hours Tuesday afternoon between Pine Street Extension and the Tumwater Truck Route after the head-on collision.
Westbound traffic was diverted to the Pine Street Extension while eastbound traffic was detoured to the Tumwater Truck Route, according to Port Angeles police.
According to the incident memo, Tobin’s 1998 Dodge pickup truck was eastbound on U.S. Highway 101 at milepost 246 at about 3:45 p.m. while a 2010 Toyota Tacoma pickup truck driven by Matthew S. Ennen, 33, of Port Angeles was westbound.
Tobin’s pickup experienced an equipment malfunction and crossed the centerline, striking Ennen’s pickup head-on, the memo stated. Both vehicles came to rest in the westbound lane.
Neither driver was injured and both were wearing seatbelts, according to the memo. Both vehicles were declared totally destroyed.
According to Weatherwax’s description following the incident, a trooper noticed a westbound driver driving aggressively, including passing in the turn lane.
The driver passed the trooper, who activated his lights and siren as he tried to catch up. About 10 seconds later, the driver collided head-on with another vehicle near Old Joe Road.
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Reporter Brian Gawley can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at brian.gawley@soundpublishing.com.
