FIFE, Wash. — This story was originally published on mynorthwest.com.
State troopers say a Tacoma man is likely facing charges of DUI and vehicular assault after a rear-end crash that left a woman in critical condition and injured a nine-year-old girl.
The driver, behind the wheel of a Mercedes, smashed into the back of another car on I-5 in Pierce County.
It happened just before 10 p.m. Saturday night on southbound I-5.
Troopers say the Mercedes was following a Volkswagen Rabbit at the Wapato Way E. overpass in Fife.
Investigators believe the driver of the VW slowed down as she approached a tow truck on the right shoulder of the freeway.
That’s when the vehicle was hit from behind by the Mercedes.
Officers say the driver of the Mercedes struck the 2009 Rabbit, then crashed into the right shoulder barrier under the Wapato Way E. overpass.
Both vehicles ended up blocking the two right lanes.
The woman in critical condition is 40 years old and from Covington.
She was a passenger in the Mercedes.
Photos released by the state patrol show the impact of the collision caused the airbags to deploy in the Mercedes.
Troopers believe a 44-year-old Tacoma man, the driver of the Mercedes, was impaired as he plowed into the back of the VW.
The crash left him slightly injured, but medics did not transport him to a hospital.
Instead, officers booked him into the Pierce County Jail, on investigation of DUI and vehicular assault.
The nine-year-old girl hurt in the crash was a passenger in the VW Rabbit.
Police say she was wearing a seat belt and did not need to be hospitalized.
The driver of the VW, a 27-year-old Tacoma woman, was injured in the crash.
Officers say she transported herself to a local hospital.
The accident left the two right lanes of southbound I-5 blocked for more than four hours.
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