Saturday, Aug. 30, 2008

1 killed, 1 injured in crash on Highway 288 near Ephrata

By Paula Horton, Herald staff writer

EPHRATA -- The driver of a car involved in fatal crash Thursday night near Ephrata was in serious condition Friday at a Seattle hospital.

Juan Vicente Lopez Cuara, 27, of Quincy, was flown to Harborview Medical Center with a head injury and broken pelvis and arm, the Washington State Patrol said.

His passenger, Juana Estrada Ibarra, 43, of Quincy, died at the scene of the 3:55 p.m. accident on Highway 283, troopers said.

The crash occurred when Lopez Cuara pulled a 1992 Buick Century onto the highway shoulder and tried to make a U-turn, troopers said.

He turned in front of a 1999 van that was behind him and the two vehicles crashed in the westbound lane, troopers said.

The van driver, Terry Lee Walker, 47, of Quincy, was treated at Quincy Valley Medical Center.