Two dead in Thurston County crash identified

UPDATE as of 8 p.m. The man and woman from Roy have been identified by the State Patrol as Joe Hicks, 62, and Sherry Ann Hicks, 61.

INITIAL REPORT:Two people were killed Wednesday afternoon in a crash on state Highway 510 at milepost 5, near Rockcress Drive Southeast in northeast Thurston County, according to the Washington State Patrol.

State Patrol spokesman Guy Gill said witnesses reported that a vehicle slowly drifted across the center line. “It doesn’t appear that weather or speed were factors,” Gill said.

The crash was reported at 12:53 p.m. The drifting vehicle was eastbound and hit a westbound vehicle, then spun and struck another vehicle. One of the vehicles struck a power pole and sheered it off at the base, Gill said.

The female driver, 61, and a male passenger, 60, in the first vehicle were killed, Gill said. Both were from Roy.

Gill said a preliminary investigation found food containers in the front seat, and distracted driving is a possible cause. Both driver and passenger were wearing seat belts, Gill said.

The investigation kept the road closed for several hours.

This story was originally published October 6, 2015 at 10:07 AM with the headline "Two dead in Thurston County crash identified."