Teen seriously hurt in Hwy. 26 rear-end crash

A Milwaukie teen was flown to a Portland hospital with serious injuries Saturday morning after a motorhome crashed into the back of his car as he was stopped to turn left on Highway 26 just west of the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, Oregon State Police said.

Around 10:45 a.m., a 2001 Volkswagen Jetta four-door driven by Tyler Van Vactor, 19, of Milwaukie, was stopped westbound on Highway 26 near milepost 70, signaling for a left turn onto U.S. Forest Service Road 2651, troopers said.

A 36-foot Itasca motorhome driven by Richard Stevens, 67, from Vancouver, Wash., also was westbound, coming through a slight downhill curve, and didn’t see the stopped Volkswagen in time to safely stop, the OSP reported.

The motorhome crashed into the back of the Volkswagen, propelling it over 150 feet west along the highway before it came to rest, crashed into trees off the eastbound shoulder, they said.

Off-duty paramedics from the Hoodland Fire Department and Redmond Fire & Rescue stopped at the scene and rendered medical care before they were relieved by Hoodland Fire Department and AMR ambulance medical personnel, troopers said.

Van Vactor, who had been wearing his seat belt, was flown by air ambulance to Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, where he was listed in serious condition Saturday night.

Stevens and his 68-year old wife, Elizabeth Stevens, were unhurt, troopers said. They also were wearing seat belts.

OSP was also assisted at the scene by the Wasco County Sheriff’s Office, Warm Springs Police Department and ODOT. Trooper Tyler Bechtel is the lead investigator.

All lanes were closed 30 minutes before one lane was open for traffic. The highway was cleared about two hours after the crash.