Five hurt in early morning wreck on SR 17
Mechanical failure led to accident, says WSP.
MOSES LAKE — Mechanical failure led to a one-vehicle rollover wreck that injured five people early Wednesday morning, July 1, on State Route 17 about six miles southeast of Ephrata, reported the Washington State Patrol.
Troopers said Ramiro Gomez Gonzalez, 51, Moses Lake, was driving north on the highway when his 2005 Chevrolet Uplander SUV experienced an unspecified mechanical problem near the intersection of Neppel Road NE. The malfunction caused the vehicle to leave the roadway, hit the dirt shoulder, and roll one time before coming to rest on its wheels.
The accident was reported shortly after 6:30 a.m.
Gomez Gonzalez and four passengers sustained unspecified injuries in the wreck. He was transported to Samaritan Hospital in Moses Lake, along with Gloria Ornelas, 66, also of Moses Lake; Edgar Lopez Salvador, 32; and Blanca Pimentel, 44.
A fourth passenger, 44-year-old Leticia Pimentel, was airlifted to Central Washington Hospital in Wenatchee. Towns of residence were unknown for Lopez Salvador and both Blanca and Leticia Pimentel, according to the WSP report.
Only Gomez Gonzalez and Lopez Salvador were wearing seatbelts, the report said.
Gomez Gonzalez faces charges of driving without a license and no proof of vehicle liability insurance, troopers said.
The Chevy Uplander was totaled and towed from the scene.
