‘Drive down memory lane’ turns fatal for Richland daycare worker. Her friend is jailed
A 26-year-old woman was drunk when she crashed into a parked excavator at a construction site in Pasco killing a friend, according to newly filed court documents.
Taylor Paige Seelye of Pasco appeared Tuesday afternoon in a wheelchair in Franklin County Superior Court with her leg in a cast.
She’d been trapped in the wreckage of her car, along with her passenger Nikole Noelle Vargas, 30, of Richland.
The force of the early Friday morning collision crushed Seelye’s vehicle, exposing the engine and frame, according to the document, though it did not say what type of vehicle she was driving.
She told Pasco Officer Joe Wysock that they left Vargas’ Richland home earlier Thursday night and drove to Kennewick and then to Pasco.
“She said they took the Sylvester Street exit off of N. (Highway) 395 and headed west ... toward Road 68,” Wysock wrote. “Taylor added they took this route as a ‘drive down memory lane.’”
The officer noted that Seelye didn’t mention driving through the construction zone on West Sylvester Street and was distracted by the conversation she was having. She slammed into the excavator about 12:30 a.m.
Wysock said he saw a pre-mixed cocktail “BuzzBallz” container about 10 feet away from the crash scene.
Vargas was struggling to breathe, and needed to be carefully removed from the wreckage, he said.
Paramedics rushed her to Kadlec Regional Medical Center. On the way, she needed to be revived, said the documents.
Doctors spent hours trying to save her life, but she died at 7 a.m. Friday, said officials.
Vargas was a Kennewick native and worked as a supervisor and child care worker at Kids World Childcare, where she had worked since 2014.
Seelye was still conscious when Wysock spoke with her, said court documents. She allegedly admitted to having two drinks about three hours before the crash.
On Tuesday, she pleaded innocent to charges of vehicular homicide and DUI. Her bail was initially set at $150,000, but Judge David Petersen raised it to $250,000.
Slightly more than two hours after the crash, a breath test showed her blood-alcohol level was 0.167 percent, more than twice Washington state’s legal limit of 0.08 percent.
She was taken to Lourdes Medical Center in Pasco for treatment after the crash and had her blood drawn. Then she was booked into the Franklin County jail. Results of the blood test were not included in the court documents.
GoFundMe
Kid’s World Childcare shared a Facebook post about Vargas.
“Her dedication and passion for our children and families will never be forgotten,” the West Richland company said. “This will be a difficult time for all as we try and navigate this devastating transition without her. ... Our world will never be the same.”
Her family and friends are asking for help to cover the cost of her funeral. A GoFundMe fundraiser was organized by Megan Stonestreet, Vargas’ best friend.
She said Vargas was a kind and wonderful person, adored by many.
“(She) had a profound impact on countless lives. She was be deeply missed by all who knew her,” Stonestreet said.
People can donate by going to bit.ly/VargasFundraiser.
This story was originally published May 29, 2024 at 5:00 AM.