Motorcyclist crashes on the Hanford site. He may have laid there for days
A motorcyclist is in the hospital after crashing near the Vernita Bridge.
He was found Tuesday morning and told first responders that he thought he’d been there for two days.
But Washington State Patrol Trooper Collin Cumaravel said it’s unclear when the crash happened. He said the man was found just across the Columbia River in Grant County. He’d been thrown from a motorcycle that was headed west on Highway 24.
Cumaravel said the motorcyclist was taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland.
The Vernita Bridge crosses the Columbia River from Benton County into Grant County and is on the Hanford nuclear reservation site.
That stretch of Highway 24 is remote but well traveled by employees commuting to Hanford, truck drivers and agricultural workers.
The area also is popular for salmon fishing.
This is the second serious wreck in the area in recent weeks. On Jan. 26, Jeffrey Ebey, of Sumas, Wash., died in a head-on crash on the same highway just south of the bridge.
This story is developing and will be updated.
This story was originally published February 7, 2023 at 10:57 AM.
