Two injured in High Rock Road collision

As commuters wound their way home last Wednesday evening along State Route 203, Emily Heinl pulled into the left turn lane where 203rd Street and the highway meet, according to a Washington State Patrol news release.

Residents know it as the notorious High Rock Road intersection.

Residents report close calls of their own, and the Washington State Department of Transportation has data showing nearly four dozen accidents have been recorded at the spot in the past 15 years.

One more was added to that list this week.

Traffic was shut down in both directions and rerouted while emergency crews and law enforcement responded and assisted the two injured people.

As Heinl waited to take the turn, a 35-year-old Sultan man struck the 43-year-old’s red 2017 Hyundai Elantra, according to WSP. Both drivers were oriented north. Had they kept going they would have hit Monroe in about three miles.

The impact from the Sultan man’s blue 2000 Chrysler Voyager pushed Heinl’s vehicle into oncoming traffic last Wednesday, according to WSP. A Duvall man had his 2016 Ford Edge pointed southbound. The 64-year-old collided with Heinl, according to WSP. The man was taken to EvergreenHealth and Heinl to Providence in Everett.

All three cars were towed and impounded in Monroe, according to WSP. There have been no charges filed and the cause of the wreck is still unclear. The incident remains under investigation.

It is on a slightly curved stretch of highway — also called the Monroe Duvall Road — that points north to south. If a driver turns left, they will head down 203rd Street. If they take a right, a sharp turn guides them up a steep switchback.

The site is not far from where 79-year-old Robert Allender died and several people were injured in a Nov. 5 multiple vehicle collision — about a mile away. Both his and Heinl’s accidents occurred under similar circumstances.

Allender was driving a 1981 Toyota pickup southbound on the highway when he slowed to make a left turn into a private driveway. A 2001 Dodge Ram driven by a 48-year-old Ferndale man struck his vehicle, pushing his truck into the northbound lane where a 2008 Honda Fit met him head-on.

A small group of residents lobbied for safety improvements at the intersection to newly appointed Rep. Carolyn Eslick in November. During the Coffee with your Representative meeting that was held in Monroe, neighbors Peg Ferm, Sharon Damkaer and Laurie Langley said they believe it is a matter of life and death. Their suggested fix was to build a roundabout to better regulate traffic.