Bend woman injured in Century Drive crash

A Bend woman was hospitalized Tuesday after she lost control of her SUV on an icy patch on Century Drive (the Cascade Lakes Highway) late Tuesday morning and it struck a tree, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said.

Heather Bonin, 44, was heading east, from Mt. Bachelor to Bend, on the road also called Highway 372, at the wheel of a red 2002 GMC Yukon when the crash occurred, said Lt. Tim Leak. She was traveling the speed limit on dry pavement when she lost control of the SUV on a patch of ice in a shaded area at milepost 7.

The Yukon struck a large pine tree, and the impact of the car knocked it over. Leak said the Yukon came to rest on top of the pine tree, and Bend Fire crews had to cut away limbs to get her out.

Bonin was taken by ambulance to St. Charles-Bend with non-life-threatening injuries, Leak said. A nursing supervisor said she was in fair condition Tuesday evening.

Leak noted that before the crash, there were two other single-vehicle crashes in the same area due to icy conditions, but no injuries were reported. He reminded drivers to use caution, noting that “even on nice, sunny days, there could be slick portions of the roadway located in the shaded areas.”