MOUNTLAKE TERRACE, Wash. — The Washington State Patrol is investigating how a driver ended up driving into a restricted bus lane along Interstate 5 in Mountlake Terrace this morning, slamming into a building and bursting into flames, killing the driver.
The dramatic fiery crash happened early this morning, around 3:30 a.m.
Troopers from WSP, along with South County Fire and other emergency responders, spent hours at the freeway station, which sits between the northbound and southbound lanes of I-5 in Mountlake Terrace. The bus terminal is also linked to the Mountlake Terrace light rail station.
KIRO 7 was there shortly after the fire erupted and was able to see the vehicle. It had slammed into a column that houses the elevator on the northbound side of the bus terminal, sending debris flying all over the area, including onto the walkway about 30 feet above the bus lanes and platforms for commuters. Burn marks stretched all the way up the elevator column.
For commuters, this fiery crash was one of the first things they saw during their commute. Jim Kruse saw the incident on the news and then saw it for himself as he was catching the bus this morning.
“Devastating, devastating. It’s just so bad, you know… northbound I figured it would be closed off, but southbound I figured it would open up," Kruse said.
Kruse was correct that the southbound bus lane remained open, but the fiery and deadly crash closed the northbound bus lane as troopers tried to figure out exactly what happened. Kruse says he’s seen similar incidents.
“It’s happened one time before. I remember one time a truck hit it one time years back,” he added.
Trooper Kelsey Harding responded to the scene and spoke about the incident, admitting that the charred remains of the vehicle are tough to identify.
“It’s very hard to see what the vehicle was; the fire was definitely around the entire vehicle,” she told KIRO 7.
The charred hulk of the vehicle showed no clear markers, and the front end was smashed, burned, and melted in some areas due to the intense fire and heat. South County Fire crews responded and were able to put out the fire, but the damage was extensive. Troopers and transit officials say the area of the bus terminal is technically not open to regular traffic, only buses, so they were unsure why a driver would end up here. That’s something for crash investigators to figure out, Trooper Harding said.
“At this time, we don’t know why they took this ramp,” she said. “There are just so many unknowns at this time to try to figure out why they were up here. We don’t know that, we just know that this is where the collision occurred.”
It will be up to the Medical Examiner to identify the body, which was badly burned. Trooper Harding also said there were no witnesses coming forward around the time of the crash, so they are hoping that anyone with information will give them a call.
©2026 Cox Media Group
