Two Troopers Injured In I-90 Chain-Reaction Collision

Two semi trucks and two vehicles were involved in two separate accidents in Kittitas County overnight.

The Washington State Patrol (WSP) says the incidents occurred on Interstate-90 four miles west of Cle Elum and began when a semi truck lost control and went off the roadway at around 9:45 p.m. on Sunday.

Several hours later at around 1:15 a.m. on Sunday, another semi struck a parked Washington State Department of Transportation (DOT) truck that was responding to the initial wreck. The collision created a chain reaction that caused the DOT vehicle to strike a WSP cruiser that was parked in front of it.

WSP Trooper Jeremy Weber says two troopers were injured during the multi-vehicle crash.

"The DOT truck was not occupied at the time of the collision, however one of our troopers was inside the patrol vehicle when it was hit by the DOT truck. So he was transported along with another trooper who was on the scene investigating who moved out of the way and got tangled up in some barbed wire."

Thirty-three-year-old Trooper Jeffrey G. Wood of Kennewick and 32-year-old Trooper Luis A. Silva of Yakima, as well as the driver of the second semi, 75-year-old Lazaro V. Renteria of El Paso, Texas, were all taken to Kittitas Valley Healthcare with minor injuries.

The driver of the semi involved in the initial crash, 43-year-old Anatoli Shramovych of Puyallup also suffered minor injuries as was transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

Trooper Weber says the wrecks serve as an important reminder about Washington's "Move Over" laws.

"I think it's a good reminder for people when they see emergency vehicles, that it's state law to move over into the next lane if you can. And if it's occupied and there's only that single lane available, then drivers are required to slow down ten miles an hour below the posted speed limit."

Shramovych and Renteria were each cited for distracted driving, which was the official cause of both accidents.

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