Driver killed in fiery crash on Nine Mile Road

A driver has died in a fiery accident early this morning on Nine Mile Road just north of Spokane. The 2 a.m. accident occurred when the driver, a man, left the highway and crashed into a utility pole and a tree at Pine Meadows Road, just north of the Spokane city limits, according to Washington State Patrol troopers. The first arriving fire crews reported that the vehicle was fully engulfed in flames, and that the victim could not be rescued. Troopers said the driver of the 1993 Volvo 940 was headed north on the road, which is also designated as state Highway 291. The driver failed to negotiate a curve to the right and went off the left side of the road, striking the pole and then a tree and causing the vehicle to burst into flames. The victim’s name was being withheld today pending notification of relatives. The State Patrol was handling the investigation.