Silver Lake man killed in Hwy. 31 head-on crash

A Silver Lake man was killed in a head-on crash of a pickup and car Monday afternoon on state Highway 31 southeast of La Pine, Oregon State Police reported Tuesday.

Around 1:20 p.m., OSP troopers and medics responded to the reported crash near milepost 8, eight miles south of the Highway 97/31 junction, said OSP Capt. Bill Fugate.

A preliminary investigation found that a 2003 Ford F-350 driven by Jerry Roche, 83, was eastbound on Sun Forest Drive when he entered Highway 31 and tried to make a U-turn, Fugate said.

The pickup collided with a 1994 Dodge Colt driven by Scott J. Lane, 56, of Silver Lake, who had been traveling southbound on Highway 31.

Lane was pronounced dead at the scene, while Roche received minor injuries and was taken to St. Charles Bend for treatment, Fugate said.

Highway 31 was closed for about an hour, then one lane reduction for two more hours while the investigation was underway.

OSP was assisted at the scene by the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, La Pine Fire Crescent Fire and the Oregon Department of Transportation.