A 75-year-old Portland woman died Wednesday afternoon when the car she was driving was struck by a southbound semi-truck on U.S. Highway 97 in Wasco County, and her 80-year-old husband was airlifted to a hospital with serious injuries. Mary Elizabeth Auch Hankins was pronounced dead at the scene, while her husband, Richard Thomas Hankins, survived the collision that happened near the Cow Canyon Rest Area.
According to KGW, Oregon State Police released a statement Friday detailing the crash, which occurred around 1:18 p.m. on Wednesday near milepost 69. Police said Mary Elizabeth Auch Hankins was driving a silver Toyota Venza and, per a preliminary investigation, pulled in front of an oncoming southbound commercial semi-truck while attempting a left turn. The semi struck the Venza, pushing it over an embankment, and both vehicles came to rest off the highway’s east shoulder.
Cow Canyon Rest Area is near milepost 69 on U.S. Highway 97.
Driver Identified, Investigation Continues
The semi-truck involved was a blue Volvo pulling a 53-foot box trailer, driven by 32-year-old Muhammad Shafiq of Yuba City, California, according to a press release relayed by Columbia Community Connection. Shafiq was not injured, remained at the scene, and cooperated with investigators. The cause of the crash remains under investigation, and the highway was not affected by the inquiry…