Woman killed in I-90 crash west of Ritzville
Driver facing vehicular homicide charge
Last updated 8/17/2021 at 7:04am
RITZVILLE — One person was killed in a one-vehicle crash that blocked westbound lanes of Interstate 90 on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 15.
Stacy K. Pickering, 34, of Moses Lake, was pronounced dead at the scene, the Washington State Patrol reported. She was a passenger in a 2001 Ford Windstar driven by Donald R. Burgeis, 36, of Moses Lake.
Burgeis was transported to a local hospital; he is facing a charge of vehicular homicide, the patrol reported.
Two other passengers — a 12-year-old boy and a girl whose age isn’t known — were not injured in the crash, the patrol reported. The names of the juveniles have yet to be released.
All four people in the vehicle were wearing seatbelts, the patrol reported.
Alcohol or drugs are believed to be factors, the patrol reported. Speed was also a factor.
The crash happened at 4:03 p.m., about 7 miles west of the city, near the Paha-Packard Road exit at Milepost 215. A detour was established south on Paha-Packard Road, to Schrag Road, to state Highway 21, then north to the interstate.
Burgeis was westbound on the interstate when his car veered into the median, the patrol reported. When he attempted to re-enter the roadway, the vehicle overturned and came to rest on its roof, facing northeast.
— Reporter Rod Larse contributed to this report
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