Tacoma man’s medical emergency leads to crash and fatality on state Route 7

A Tacoma man is dead following a medical emergency and car crash involving four vehicles on state Route 7 Friday evening.

The Pierce County Medical Examiner’s office identified the victim as Edward S. Stahl, 64.

The accident occurred around 8:30 p.m. on SR 7, just south of 176th Street South in Spanaway, according to the Washington State Patrol.

No one else was injured.

Stahl was driving a 1998 Honda Accord north on SR 7 while the other three vehicles involved were stopped at a red light at 176th Street. They were also headed northbound, according to the State Patrol.

It appears Stahl had a medical emergency, the State Patrol said. The Accord hit a stopped Dodge Ram pickup which then struck a Mitsubishi Outlander and a Volkswagon Jetta.

Stahl’s vehicle continued over a curb and came to rest in a grassy area on the east side of the highway, the State Patrol said.

All northbound lanes of SR 7 were blocked for two hours.

This story was originally published January 12, 2019 at 1:12 PM.