Bend man killed in Hwy. 97 van-semi head-on crash

A 26-year-old Bend man was killed Saturday afternoon when his van crossed the center line of Highway 97 for unknown reasons and collided head-on with a semi-truck, Oregon State Police reported.

The crash was reported shortly after 1:30 p.m. and blocked the highway in both directions near milepost 162, just north of the Paulina Lake Road junction and about six miles north of La Pine, OSP Lt. Bill Fugate said.

A preliminary investigation found that Nathan D. Mackey was at the wheel of a 2002 Chevrolet van heading south “when it crossed over the center line for unknown reasons,” Fugate said in a news release.

The truck driver, Steven Wester, 59, of Yakima, Wash., was not injured.

Fire crews had to cut away the roof of the van to remove the driver, the lieutenant noted.

“Contributing factors to the crash are still under investigation,” Fugate said, adding that more information will be released when it’s available.

The crash closed the highway for much of the day, with a detour established on nearby roads. OSP was assisted at the scene by the Oregon Department of Transportation, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office and La Pine Fire and Rescue.

It was one of four fatal crashes in the last 24 hours handled by OSP, not including ones dealt with by local agencies, Fugate said.

It also was the third fatal head-on crash on Central Oregon highways in four days, claiming a total of five lives.

A Redmond man and a Bend couple died Wednesday afternoon in a head-on crash of a courier van and SUV on Highway 20E about 25 miles east of Bend. A Madras man was killed and a Prineville man injured Thursday evening in a head-on crash of an SUV and a van on Highway 126 west of Redmond.

In each case, one vehicle crossed the center line and struck the other, for reasons that remain under investigation.