Three Wash. residents killed, fourth seriously injured in Hwy. 58 crash west of Oakridge
(Update: OSP identifies victims, says fourth vehicle, possibly blue pickup, being sought)
OAKRIDGE, Ore. (KTVZ) – Three Washington state residents were killed and a fourth seriously injured Sunday when an Oakridge man passing in a no-passing zone on state Highway 58 west of Oakridge collided with a minivan and an oncoming car, Oregon State Police reported. A fourth vehicle involved in the crash was being sought.
OSP troopers and other emergency personnel responded around 10:15 a.m. to the reported crash near milepost 28, about eight miles west of Oakridge, Captain Tim Fox said.
A preliminary investigation found that a 31-year-old Oakridge man was driving a Ford Taurus heading west, passing in a no-passing zone, when his car collided with a Chrysler Town and Country, also heading west and driven by a 63-year-old Oakridge man, Fox said.
The Taurus then collided with an eastbound Mazda M3. The Mazda's driver, Jagadish Chandrasekaren, 31, and two passengers, Adharsh Murali, 25, and Jignesh Modi, 27, sustained fatal injuries, Fox said. A third passenger, Puneeth Gattikoppula, 24, was flown to a hospital by air ambulance with serious injuries, Fox said. Their hometowns in Washington were not available.
The Ford driver was taken to the hospital. The minivan driver later went to the hospital for treatment.
Fox said Monday OSP was seeking the public's assistance in finding a fourth vehicle, possibly a blue pickup, that was involved in the crash but whose driver left without providing information.
If you were a witness to the crash, have any video/pictures around the time and area of the crash, or any information, please contact the Oregon State Police Northern Command Center at 1-800-442-0776 or *OSP and leave information for Trooper Phillips regarding OSP case # SP21-144382.
OSP has been assisted by the Lane County Sheriff’s Office, the Oakridge, Goshen and Dexter fire departments, the Lane County District Attorney’s Office and ODOT.
