Two people were killed early Thursday when the driver of a Chevrolet Blazer lost control and the vehicle rolled several times and crashed near the Orting area, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department said.

Investigators said speed was a factor in the crash. They also were looking into whether drugs or alcohol contributed to the wreck, sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer said.

A witness called 911 just after 4 a.m. to report the crash in the 23500 block of Orville Road East. The driver, a 41-year-old man, was lying in the road and said a woman had been with him.

Paramedics took the man to a local hospital, where he died of his injuries.

Deputies and firefighters searched the crash scene in the dark but didn’t find the woman. After daylight, a police dog found the woman, who was buried in the ground by the impact of the crash.

The 37-year-old woman, who was found about 30 yards from the wreck, appeared to have died on impact, Troyer said.

Investigators said neither the man nor the woman appeared to have been wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. Their names have not been released.

Stacey Mulick, The News Tribune