1 killed, 1 critically injured when suspected drunken driver causes 3-car crash near Sumner

A 65-year-old woman was killed and a man critically injured Tuesday night when a suspected drunken driver slammed into their car, pushing it into traffic near Sumner.

The three-vehicle collision took place shortly after 8 p.m. at Sumner Tapps Highway East and 162nd Avenue East.

The road will be closed in both directions until 11 p.m., according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department.

A Geo Metro with two people was stopped to make a left turn when a suspected drunken driver in a Ford Ranger truck crashed into the back of the car traveling 45 to 50 mph.

“It forced them into oncoming traffic, where they got hit by another car going the same speed,” sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer said.

The passenger in the Geo Metro was pronounced dead at the scene. She has not been identified.

The male driver was taken to an area hospital in critical condition.

Two people in the third vehicle, a Toyota Camry, were also injured in the crash.

The suspected drunken driver, a 61-year-old Bonney Lake man, was taken to a hospital to be checked out. He is expected to be booked into Pierce County Jail on suspicion of vehicular homicide.

This story was originally published January 29, 2019 at 9:03 PM.