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Survivor of SR 18 collision describes tense moments after crash

A local woman is talking to KIRO 7 about the horrific crash Wednesday that injured her and killed another driver near Snoqualmie.

The Washington State Patrol says the crash occurred just after 4:30 p.m. Wednesday on State Route 18 just west of I-90 near Tiger Mountain. It closed the roadway in both directions for hours.

Troopers say a large metal car part fell off a truck and caused the crash.

Brenda Hoyt, age 55, says she left work early and was driving westbound on SR 18 when she was hit by the other car. She says she had no time to react to avoid that crash, but she went above and beyond after getting out of her car.

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“I'm telling everybody call 911! We got out and we were directing traffic, I had no idea that I was hurt because the adrenaline was going," she said.

With a broken ankle and injured knee, Brenda Hoyt says she was glad to be healing at home Thursday evening at her home in Covington.

Hoyt spoke to KIRO 7 in her living room and admitted she’s still reeling from the events Wednesday afternoon; when her jeep was slammed by another car.

“Out of the blue the car was in my lane, just like that. No time to react nothing. I just remember grabbing the wheel .. all the airbags went off, very smoky. I remember just shoving the door open to get out,” Hoyt said.

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Hoyt says even though she was injured, she and others who'd stopped tried to check on the woman in the other car. She said one person checked to see if she had a pulse, and all of them did work initially to try to get her out.

The WSP says that woman, 57-year-old Kyung Cho, of Federal Way, did not survive.

On Thursday, the WSP added more details about the unsecured load that may have caused the crash.

Hoyt says she fully knows the law about transporting unsecured loads in Washington, “It's illegal, you need to have a secured load.”

The WSP says a driveline hit Cho's car causing it to spin out of control and hit Hoyt's SUV. The State Patrol also believes it fell off of a tractor-trailer that was being hauled as part of a chain. Hoyt says she mourns the loss of life and wonders if a simple check to secure that driveline could have prevented all of this.

"What I've been through it's very painful, but I'm learning to get along with it." Hoyt said. "Thank God I'm here. It's definitely not my time to go."

The WSP is still asking anyone with information about the crash to come forward.