Driver cited for DUI in rollover crash that injured 5 Bellingham teens, police say
Five Bellingham teens were hurt, some of them seriously, and the driver is facing a drunken-driving charge after a rollover crash early Sunday morning on Interstate 5.
A total of six people were in a Ford F150 crew cab pickup that drifted off the freeway, hit the median cable barrier and rolled shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday on northbound I-5 at Northwest Drive, according to the Washington State Patrol.
At least five of the occupants weren’t wearing seat belts, the State Patrol report said.
Kiya J. Winder, 18, of Bellingham, was cited on suspicion of drunken driving and released for treatment at St. Joseph Medical Center, said Trooper Kelsey Harding. She was listed in satisfactory condition Sunday, hospital spokeswoman Bev Mayhew told The Bellingham Herald.
State Patrol detectives were still examining evidence and witness statements, Harding told The Herald.
“There could be more charges added at a later date,” Harding said.
Also injured in the crash were;
▪ Andrea Cervantes-Garcia, 18, of Bellingham, who was taken to St. Joseph Medical Center. She was listed in satisfactory condition Sunday, Mayhew said.
▪ Louise S. Greene, 18, of Bellingham, who was taken to St. Joseph Medical Center. She was listed in satisfactory condition Sunday,Mayhew said.
▪ A 16-year-old Bellingham girl who was taken to St. Joseph Medical Center. Her name was withheld because she is a minor and hospital officials wouldn’t release her condition.
▪ A 15-year-old Bellingham girl who was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Her condition wasn’t immediately available.
Six ambulances, three fire engines, a ladder truck and additional Bellingham Fire Department personnel were sent to the incident, according to the Pulse Point emergency services app.
Traffic was diverted off the freeway and around the incident, which blocked both lanes of northbound I-5 for about five hours, the Washington State Department of Transportation tweeted.
