Police are still seeking information from witnesses of a fatal crash that took place Wednesday evening at a busy Mendenhall Valley intersection.
People who may have seen the wreck at Mendenhall Loop Road and Egan Drive involving a blue Toyota Corolla and a white Ford truck are asked by Juneau Police Department to call the dispatch at (907) 586-0600 to provide contact information so that investigators may follow up with them. The crash killed one and injured three others, according to Juneau Police Department.
[Police investigate wreck after one dead, three injured]
According to police, a preliminary investigation found the truck was driving outbound on Egan Drive in the merge lane to turn right onto Mendenhall Loop Road. The truck did not turn, continued straight, driving over the median and crossed onto Mendenhall Loop Road at the intersection. The blue Toyota received a green light while in the Egan inbound turn lane and was completing a left turn through the intersection onto Mendenhall Loop Road. The truck struck the Toyota, then struck the intersection’s northern traffic signal light pole, smashing the front end of the truck. The truck ultimately landed on the driver’s side of the truck.
No charges or citations have been announced in relation to the crash at this time.
As crews arrived at the scene on Wednesday, the Ford truck was found lodged against a traffic pole with all three occupants still trapped inside of the vehicle, according to JPD. Capital City Fire/Rescue extricated the driver and one of the passengers of the truck.
According to JPD, the occupants of the truck included a 55-year-old Juneau man who was medevaced out of town in critical condition, as well as a 33-year-old Juneau man who was treated at Bartlett Regional Hospital and released early Thursday morning. The third occupant of the truck identified by police as a 27-year-old Juneau woman died at the scene. Her next of kin was notified on Thursday afternoon, according to police. Police did not release the names of the truck’s occupants and declined to say which man was driving the truck, citing an ongoing investigation.
The Corolla was driven by an 18-year-old woman with a 15-year-old boy as the passenger, according to JPD. The 15-year-old boy was transported to the hospital in critical condition, but was released Wednesday night, according to JPD. Police did not release the names of the driver or passenger in the car.
Both vehicles sustained extensive damage and were totaled and impounded, according to JPD. The roadway was closed for roughly five hours and reopened at around 10:15 p.m. Wednesday.
• Contact reporter Jonson Kuhn at jonson.kuhn@juneauempire.com.
