California woman killed, 3 people injured in Hwy. 97 head-on crash south of Madras

(Update: OSP releases information)

MADRAS, Ore. (KTVZ) – A California woman was killed and three other people were injured in a head-on crash on U.S. Highway 97 south of Madras Thursday afternoon, Oregon State Police reported.

Troopers and other emergency personnel responded around 12:45 p.m. to the crash near milepost 104, about nine miles south of Madras, OSP Captain Tim Fox said.

A preliminary investigation found that a 51-year-old Madras man was heading north when his car, a Chevy Impala, left the roadway and he lost control. The car entered the southbound lane, colliding with a Mazda CX-5 driven by a 70-year-old man from Bothell, Washington, Fox said.

A passenger in the Impala, Donna Reynaga, 52, of Ontario, California, sustained fatal injuries and died at the scene, Fox said.

The Impala’s driver was taken by air ambulance to the hospital. The Mazda driver and his passenger, a 62-year-old Bothell, Washington woman, also were taken to the hospital with injuries.

Jefferson County Sheriff Marc Heckathorn said the highway was closed between Jericho and Iris lanes and urged motorists to use state Highway 361 (the Old Culver Highway) as a detour.

ODOT's initial alert indicated an "extensive closure" was anticipated, with northbound traffic rerouted to the Culver Highway. "Motorists should avoid travel in the area for the time being," the agency said.

Heckathorn later confirmed the detour was established in both directions and that a backlog of semi-trucks had been cleared.

The highway reopened between Madras and Juniper Butte shortly before 6 p.m.

OSP was assisted at the scene by the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Jefferson County EMS and ODOT.

Around 4:30 p.m., another injury crash, involving a car and semi truck, closed Highway 97 for close to an hour two miles north of Bend, near Bowery Lane, ODOT reported.

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