STAMPEDE PASS, Wash. — Two men were ejected from their truck when it rolled 400 feet down an embankment after swerving to avoid a pothole on Stampede Pass Road.
The crash happened around 9 a.m. on Thursday near the border with King County, according to the Kittitas County Sheriff.
Officials say that the truck caught the “soft gravel” on the edge of the road which caused it to tumble down the steep embankment.
The driver was ejected near the top of the steep slope and only sustained minor injuries, but the passenger was thrown about 20 feet from the truck. The passenger was hurt in his head, shoulder, and other parts of his body.
After the wreck, it was obvious that the truck had been destroyed and that the two men were stranded on a mountainside in the driving rain.
Luckily for them, deputies from the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office soon arrived and climbed down to find the men. While the driver could walk, the passenger could not and showed signs of hypothermia.
The deputies then coordinated with Snoqualmie Pass Fire & Rescue and asked for additional help from Kittitas County Search and Rescue. The Seattle Mountain Rescue and the KVFR High Angle Rescue team also responded to the crash.
Both men were then taken to the hospital for treatment.
“This was a challenging operation in remote and difficult conditions, with no time to lose,” said a spokesperson. “The professionalism and inter-agency cooperation of everyone involved was critical to saving a life today. Thank you to all the personnel and agencies involved. Our community was once again made safer because of you.”
©2023 Cox Media Group
