Odot Worker to the Rescue

An ODOT employee is credited with rescuing an injured man from a submerged vehicle following a Tuesday afternoon five-vehicle car accident along Highway 20 east of Albany. Five people were suffered personal injuries and were transported to a hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries.

According to Trooper Ray Stallsworth, on June 19, 2012 at approximately 3:24 p.m. traffic was stopped eastbound on Highway 20 near milepost 7 for ODOT roadwork. John Olson, age 21, from Sisters, driving a 1996 Dodge pickup towing a flatbed trailer loaded with hay failed to notice stopped traffic, braked hard to try to avoid a collision but didn’t stop in time. The Dodge pickup crashed into the rear of a 1970 Chevrolet pickup, leading to a chain-reaction crash involving 3 other vehicles. After the initial impact, the Chevrolet pickup collided into the back of a 2003 Dodge Caravan. The Chevrolet pickup then careened across the westbound lane and off the roadway into a bordering pond where it became completely submerged.

An alert ODOT worker identified as Troy Elverfeld, age 47, from Lebanon, saw smoke from the crash and went to the scene. He took a metal rod from a backhoe and dove into the water where he saw the submerged pickup and its operator still inside with windows rolled up. Elverfeld broke the driver’s side window with the pipe and tried a couple times to pull the driver out. On the third try, he successfully pulled the driver out to safety.

Olson was cited by OSP for Careless Driving. What happened here is not uncommon – driver’s speed does not take into account the possibility of stopped vehicles ahead. But one of the basic rules of driving is that you leave yourself enough room between yourself and the next car to stop immediately if need be. And if you do not see what lies ahead – whether it be because of weather or a bend in the road – then you slow down. Oregon Revised Statute 811.100 states that a “person commits the offense of violating the basic speed rule if the person drives a vehicle upon a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent”, having due regard to such things as traffic, weather, visibility or any other conditions existing at the time. Unfortunately, violation of this statute – even if unintended – results in crashes that injure those involved. If you are such a victim, or you know someone who is, feel free to call for a free consultation.