Scooter and Avista truck collision in Logan Neighborhood leaves rider seriously injured

A man on a scooter collided with an Avista truck towing a large equipment trailer near Indiana Avenue and Hamilton Street in north Spokane late Wednesday morning.

The pedestrian sustained life threatening injuries. Until around 2:30 p.m., Indiana Avenue, between Morton Street and Hamilton Street, was closed.

Pat Davis, a resident of the area, witnessed the aftermath of the crash, which happened about 10:40 a.m. She was walking toward her car, with her back turned away from the direction of the collision when she saw a man in a lawn care truck pull up beside her vehicle. He hopped out of his truck and sprinted in the opposite direction she was going, toward the crash. Because the neighborhood is next to several busy arterials, Davis said she did not hear anything apart from normal traffic sounds.

When she rounded the corner, she saw that man take off his jacket and apply it, with the help of the Avista driver, to the pedestrian’s accessible wounds. The pedestrian was wedged between the two back wheels of Avista’s dual-axel equipment trailer when Davis saw the scene.

Davis said, the large equipment trailer was empty.

The lawn care man and the Avista driver told the injured pedestrian to remain still and on his back until emergency services arrived.

While the initial collision occurred at Hamilton and Indiana, the pedestrian was dragged about a block, just past Columbus and Indiana, Davis said.

Police said in a news release that the Avista driver cooperated with officers and showed no signs of impairment.

“Safety and community well-being are central to Avista’s values,” Avista spokesman David Volwels said in the prepared statement. “We are taking this matter very seriously and are committed to supporting a thorough investigation.”