Bend pedestrian struck on Third Street dies of injuries

A man struck by a minivan as he crossed Northeast Third Street near the southbound Bend Parkway on-ramp Sunday evening died later that night at the hospital, police confirmed Monday as they released more details about what took place.

Police and fire personnel rushed to the scene of the crash, reported at 6:11 p.m. Sunday .on Third Street just south of Northeast Division Street, said Lt. Nick Parker.

Officers arrived and found Danny Lee Williams, a 51-year-old transient, in the roadway, unconscious and not breathing, Parker said.

At least one passing motorist had stopped to perform CPR before officers took over, the lieutenant said. Bend Fire medics soon took over and rushed Williams to St. Charles Bend, where he died Sunday night, said Lt. Clint Burleigh.

Taylor Eric Smith, 18, of Bend, was driving a 2005 champagne-colored Ford Freestar minivan heading south on Third Street when the collision occurred, Parker said, adding that he stopped and was cooperating in the investigation. Parker said Smith told officers he did not see the man before the collision.

On Monday, Parker said investigators had determined that Williams was in the right lane of the two southbound Third Street lanes south of the Division Street intersection and north of the parkway onramp when he was struck

“He was not within a crosswalk, was wearing dark clothing, and determined to be alcohol-impaired,” Parker said in a news release.

While the investigation is continuing, the lieutenant said “speed, cellphone use and impairment do not appear to be driver factors.”

Southbound traffic on Third Street was diverted for several hours onto Northeast Division Street, and one of the two northbound lanes also was closed.

Lights were brought in for an investigation and crash reconstruction, which Parker said lasted well into the night.

Several crashes were reported around the region on Sunday, amid scattered showers and some slick conditions, including a rollover around 3:30 p.m. on Highway 97 south of Bend, near the ODOT weigh station and Lava Butte. That driver apparently was not seriously injured.

Another rollover crash was reported on Century Drive (Highway 372, the road to Mount Bachelor) around 5:30 p.m.