POULSBO — Two car crashes, including one death scare, occured on rain-slickened roads during the week.
The crashes came less than a week after three people were killed in a two-car crash on Highway 104 near Balmoral Place NE, in Kingston.
The Washington State Patrol, Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office and Poulsbo Police Department issued press releases earlier this week urging motorists to be extra cautious as rain was expected to continue through Thanksgiving and the weekend.
“There are more crashes this time of year because it gets darker sooner, the roads are more slippery, and there are more drunk drivers out,” a press release from the Poulsbo Police Department stated.
A two-car crash on Highway 305 in front of the Masi Shop and Shell gas station left one person with minor injuries Monday.
The crash, which occurred at approximately 10 a.m., blocked both lanes of the highway. Robert W. Faulkner, 57, of Suquamish is charged with failure to yield.
Faulkner was exiting the Masi Shop parking lot 1993 Oldsmobile Bravada onto Highway 305 when his vehicle was struck on the driver’s side by a 1990 Chevy Caprice driven by Robert B. Olson, 76, of Allyn.
Olson was driving in the southbound lane of 305 when the collision occurred.
Faulkner’s car came to rest in the northbound lane and shoulder. Olson’s car stopped in the southbound lane.
Olson was taken by paramedic to Harrison Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries. Each car had one passenger that was not injured.
Traffic was detoured through Totten Road and the gas station for more than an hour.
Two days earlier, a passerby and State Patrol officer extinguished a vehicle fire that started after an SUV went off the road and rolled, trapping the driver inside, on Bond Road near Rova Road.
Poulsbo Fire Department and North Kitsap Fire and Rescue went to the scene of the single-car crash at 1:40 p.m. When crews arrived, they found that a passerby, who claimed to be a former New York City firefighter, and the Washington State Patrol had already extinguished the fire with a fire extinguisher, according to Poulsbo Fire spokeswoman Jody Matson. However, the 51-year-old Hansville woman was still trapped in her Subaru SUV.
“Firefighters extricated the woman and transported her to Harrison Hospital in Bremerton with what appeared to be minor injuries,” Matson reported.
“Highway 307 — Bond Road near Rova — was completely shut down for about 10 minutes, then opened to one lane and alternating traffic for approximately 45 minutes.”
The cause of the crash was under investigation. It was raining when the crash occurred.