Driver abandons his Jeep and flees after I-82 crash near Oregon border

Investigators are looking for a driver who slammed into a car on Interstate 82 south of the Tri-Cities on Wednesday, then ran away.

The driver of a red Jeep hit the back of a Honda CRV about 5:15 a.m. as the Honda was slowing down just north of the Columbia River at the Oregon border, Trooper Daniel Mosqueda told the Tri-City Herald.

Traffic was slowing just past the Highway 14 exit because a vehicle fire and highway construction had caused a big backup in the northbound I-82 lanes, Mosqueda said.

The collision was one of several in a 10-mile stretch of Interstate 82 on Wednesday morning. Road construction in the area has been snarling traffic in both directions.

Firefighters stopped by the Jeep crash and checked on both drivers but by the time WSP troopers arrived, the driver of the Jeep had taken off, abandoning his vehicle, said Mosqueda.

The CRV driver, Lisa J. Kopetski, 68, of Pendleton, suffered some cuts and was taken to Good Shepherd Health Care in Hermiston to be checked.

It’s not clear where the Jeep driver went along the rural stretch of highway. Mosqueda said it’s possible he called someone to pick him up.

Detectives are still trying to track down the driver, who now may face felony hit-and-run charges.