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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Four Die When Car Hits Tree Troopers Believe Speed, Alcohol Were Fatal Combination

Three men and a woman were killed Sunday afternoon when their car crashed into a Ponderosa pine about a mile north of Valley, Wash., on state Highway 231.

Alcohol may have been a factor in the accident, the Washington State Patrol said.

The dead woman was identified as Tina M. Edwards, 22, of Valley. The names of the men were not released Sunday, pending the notification of relatives.

All three men were thought to be in their early 20s, and at least one was thought to be from Valley, authorities said. The car was registered to a driver from Springdale, Wash.

The wreck happened about 4:30 p.m. when the car sped north from Valley, on Highway 231 toward U.S. Highway 395. A witness told the State Patrol investigator the car passed the witness’s car at a high rate of speed.

“It was really booking,” the witness said.

The speeding car, a white 1989 Toyota Supra, apparently clipped another tree about 50 feet before slamming into the Ponderosa pine, more than three feet in diameter. Faint skid marks on the roadway led up to the crash.

When the witness’s car rounded the slight curve, a cloud of dust still was in the air from the wreck. Two of the male passengers, most likely the driver and the front-seat passenger, were thrown from the wreckage. The steering wheel and the car’s muffler were on the ground next to one of the men.

The other two passengers had to be removed from the crumpled wreckage. That took about an hour, said State Patrol Sgt. David McMillan.

The woman was still alive, her legs straddling the pine, but she died after being lifted from the car, McMillan said.

“You don’t see many like this, with the car wrapped around the tree,” McMillan said. “It is a terrible accident.”

Although the weather Sunday shifted between a slight mist and a downpour, road conditions were not a factor in the accident, McMillan said.

Drinking may have contributed, he said.

A bottle of whiskey was found near the front passenger’s seat. A 12-pack of beer also was found in the car.

A stretch of Highway 231 was closed for about four hours Sunday evening as authorities investigated the accident.

The Chewelah and Valley fire departments, Chewelah police and ambulances, the Stevens County Sheriff’s Department and the State Patrol all responded to the accident, the second serious car wreck in Stevens County in four months.

In July, five Deer Park residents died in a two-car accident on a rural Stevens County road.

It was unclear, because of the force of the crash, whether any of the passengers Sunday were wearing seat belts, McMillan said.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Map of accident area