Police & Fire

Two die in toll booth crash

Two people died in a collision at the Tacoma Narrows Bridge toll booths Friday afternoon, according to the Washington State Patrol.

A Department of Transportation camera shot shows fire crews responding to the crash.

At 2:02 p.m., a white 2008 Ford Explorer entered the toll plaza and didn’t slow down. It crossed from Lane 4 to Lane 2 and struck a black 2017 Chevy Sonic, pushing it into an attenuator. The Explorer came to rest on its side just east of the toll plaza. The Sonic wound up in Toll Booth 2, according to the State Patrol collision report.

Both people in the Sonic died at the scene. Their names have not been released pending notification of family. The Explorer driver is a 61-year-old Lakewood woman and the passenger a 63-year-old Spanaway man. Both were taken to Tacoma General Hospital, according to the report. No toll booth workers were injured.

All four people were wearing seat belts. Neither drugs nor alcohol were involved, according to the report. The cause is pending investigation, it states.

Three of the toll booths were initially closed while the crash was investigated while mainline lanes remained open. Later the toll plaza was closed entirely, according to the Department of Transportation. It reopened at 6:25 p.m. except the oversize load booths.

The two oversized load booths on the right side of the toll plaza will remain closed until further notice while Washington State Department of Transportation crews inspect and assess any damage they sustained. Oversized vehicles — including commercial vehicles, tractor trailers and semis — need to remain in the mainline lanes when crossing the bridge. Tolls will be charged to a Good To Go! account electronically, or a toll bill will be mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle. The same pertains to vehicles that couldn’t use the toll booths during the incident.

The four toll booth lanes on the left side of the plaza will stay open.