Going way too fast

By Katherine Schiffner

Herald Writer

GRANITE FALLS — To Janet Ford’s 11-year-old son, the crash sounded like a gunshot.

The collision between a car and dump-truck trailer happened just seconds after Ford saw two cars zoom down East Pioneer Street, passing in a blur.

"I thought they were going to crash because they were driving recklessly, and then they did," said Ford, who rushed from a child care center where she was playing with her son to the scene to aid the three teen-agers injured in Tuesday’s wreck.

Ford and other residents said Wednesday they worry about how fast the cars were driving — reportedly up to 90 mph in a 25 mph zone — and allegations that the two cars were racing before one collided with the trailer.

But officials said the alleged racing seemed to be an isolated incident, because gravel trucks and the street layout make it nearly impossible to do.

Granite Falls Mayor Floyd "Butch" DeRosia, said street racing is rare in town "because we just don’t have the streets they can get away with it on."

"I think this is like a one-time affair," DeRosia said.

Yet, Ford’s concerns were echoed by a number of Granite Falls residents Wednesday, including Linda Johnson, 36.

"I was horrified a 16-year-old kid was driving that fast through town," she said, adding, "Those kids are lucky they didn’t kill someone."

She said speeding through Granite Falls is especially dangerous because of the high number of gravel trucks on the road from local mining companies. But the focus in town seemed to be on the high speeds and young car drivers rather than the trucks, which have long been an issue in Granite Falls.

Investigators believe the two cars, one driven by a 16-year-old and the other a 19-year-old, were racing before the crash happened.

The 16-year-old, who reportedly was driving his mother’s car, allegedly sped through a stop sign and struck the dump-truck trailer, tipping it on its side.

He and the driver of the other car are under investigation for vehicular assault, Washington State Patrol Trooper Lance Ramsay said.

The dump-truck driver was not injured and is not under investigation, Ramsay said.

A passenger in the car driven by the 19-year-old denied the cars were racing, and a friend of both teen drivers said Wednesday he was convinced the two were not racing.

"It’s not like either one of them to race, " said Hans Nispel, 17, of Granite Falls, who has driven with both teens. "They’re real responsible drivers."

The 16-year-old driver had an intermediate driver’s license, which restricts teen drivers from having any passengers in the car under 20 during their first six months of driving and limits to three the number of passengers under 20 for the rest of a teen’s first year on the road.

Ramsay said he did not know how long the boy, who turned 16 nine months ago, had his license. The 16-year-old was driving with two female passengers, both 19.

Passenger Ashley Jenkins of Granite Falls was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where she was in serious condition with head, jaw and shoulder injuries .

Passenger Michelle Kossech, also of Granite Falls, and the 16-year-old driver were both in satisfactory condition at Harborview on Wednesday.

The mayor said the city council was scheduled to discuss banning trucks from the 100 block to 300 block of S. Granite Avenue, except for deliveries, at its meeting Wednesday night. But he said the move was not in response to the crash, and said the intersection where the crash happened will still be open to trucks.

You can call Herald Writer Katherine Schiffner at 425-339-3436 or send e-mail to schiffner@heraldnet.com.

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