Two Bend brothers killed in Powell Butte Hwy. crash

(Update: Adding Taylor NW, Powell Butte Country Store statements)

Two Bend brothers headed for their construction jobs at Facebook’s Prineville Data Center were killed early Friday morning when their pickup left the Powell Butte Highway, possibly due to ice, and crashed into a large juniper tree, authorities said.

Crook County sheriff’s deputies were dispatched shortly before 6 a.m. to the rollover crash on the Powell Butte Highway near Alfalfa Road in Powell Butte, Sgt. Jake Childers said.

They arrived to find Crook County Fire and Rescue crews stabilizing a Toyota Tundra that had turned onto its side and crashed into the juniper tree, crushing the cab, Childers said.

The driver, Joshua Eckstein , 19, and his passenger, older brother Jacob Eckstein , 21, died at the scene, the sergeant said. He added that they were employed with Taylor NW and were heading to work at Facebook in Prineville.

Evidence at the crash scene and a witness account indicated the pickup was heading east toward Prineville when the driver lost control, veered into the oncoming lane, then overcorrected and began sliding sideways, crossing the eastbound lane and onto the soft shoulder, Childers said. It then rolled onto its side and slid farther until it hit the tree.

Childers said the cause of the crash was not known, but “icy road conditions may have been a factor.”

The crash and investigation closed the highway for about two hours, Childers said.

The sheriff’s office and Crook County Fire and Rescue were assisted at the scene by Oregon State Police, the Redmond and Bend fire departments, AirLink, the Crook County Road Department, a St. Charles Prineville nurse and “several dedicated citizens,” Childers said. An AirLink helicopter was dispatched but later called off.

Taylor NW provided a statement on behalf of the company: ” We’re deeply saddened by this event. Both men were valuable members of our team and will be severely missed. Our hearts and prayers go out to their family and friends. ”

The Powell Butte Country Store, in a Facebook note about the crash, said, “Our morning crew would see them almost every day and say they were the nicest young men, brothers, so their family needs all our prayers.”