Drivers flee rollover crashes near Tri-Cities. Richland wreck hurts man and child
Tri-Cities officers responded to a number of serious wrecks Monday, including two rollovers that ended with a search for drivers who ran from the scene.
Over the past several weeks deputies have received multiple calls about street racing, including in the area of South Oak Street and East Bowles Road in Finley.
On Monday night, Benton County deputies were alerted to a crash there after witnesses say they heard more racing in the area.
The driver, who totaled his vehicle and fled the scene, caused an estimated $10,000 in damages to private property and Benton PUD equipment.
Deputies identified the suspected driver as Salvador Trinidad Mendoza, 22. He was later pulled over in Richland and arrested on suspicion of hit-and-run.
More charges may be coming after the case is reviewed by Benton County prosecutors.
Jail records show Mendoza also was arrested June 21 on suspicion of DUI.
Yakima Valley ravine escape
Earlier on Monday, a Washington State Patrol trooper in the Sunnyside area tried to stop a vehicle speeding on Interstate 82, but the driver sped off, Trooper Daniel Mosqueda told the Tri-City Herald.
The trooper did not pursue the car, but later in the morning, about 11 a.m., officers went to a Kennewick home associated with the vehicle to follow up.
While troopers were there, they were called about a rollover crash on Interstate 82 near Locust Grove Road. It was the same vehicle.
The driver was identified as Arvind Tawana.
When troopers arrived they found the vehicle, but Tawana was reportedly seen running into nearby fields.
After a search involving officers, K-9 teams and drones, he was found climbing out of a ravine and taken into custody.
He had traveled several miles using the ravines as cover, according to the Benton County Sheriff’s Office.
Tawana was arrested on suspicion of driving without an ignition interlock, hit-and-run and driving with a suspended license.
Gway crash
A man and a child were hurt in Richland on Monday when they were hit by a truck hauling a trailer and construction equipment that failed to yield coming onto George Washington Way, according to Washington State Patrol.
Jesse Green, 38, of Richland, was headed west on I- 182 approaching George Washington Way when Moises Bernal Silva crossed the solid white lines where the highways merge from Highway 240 into Green’s lane.
Bernal Silva, 37, of Burbank, was driving a 1995 Ford F350 hauling a 24-foot trailer with a small front loader on it. He was part of a crew doing shoulder work along the roadway in front of the WinCo shopping center this week.
Green and a 6-year-old passenger were in a Ford Fusion and were taken to a local hospital with serious injuries. As of noon Tuesday, they were still hospitalized, but their injuries are not life-threatening, Mosqueda said.
Both vehicles were totalled. The wreck is under investigation and will be sent to prosecutors to review for possible charges.
Mosqueda said they weren’t speeding, but noted that the merging lanes are still at highway speeds on that portion of the roadway.
