Man walking along I-5 killed in eight-car crash near Bow Hill Road exit
A 45-year-old Sedro-Woolley man who was reportedly walking along the fog line of southbound Interstate 5 near the Bow Hill Road exit was killed Saturday night when he was hit by four vehicles. In all, eight vehicles were involved in the accident, including two being driven by Bellingham drivers.
The crash closed both southbound lanes of I-5 just north of the exit for more than six hours, according to Washington State Department of Transportation tweets Saturday night and Sunday morning.
According to the Washington State Patrol release on the incident, Oly Stan Oberg was killed at approximately 11:18 p.m. Saturday while walking northbound along the fog line behind a vehicle that was stopped on the right shoulder of the freeway. Trooper Heather Axtman told The Bellingham Herald in an interview Monday that she was unsure if the car Oberg was walking behind was his car.
Oberg was reportedly struck in the right lane by a black 2003 Subaru Forester driven by 18-year-old Nathaniel Patrick Wheeler of Mount Vernon. Wheeler suffered a minor injury in the incident and was taken to Skagit Valley Hospital.
According to the release, Oberg was then struck in the left lane by a Peterbuilt semi truck and trailer and two other cars. The State Patrol reported that those drivers were uninjured in the incident and all were able to drive away from the scene.
Two other vehicles reportedly struck debris, but both also were able to drive away, the State Patrol reported, as were two other cars that went into the median to avoid the collision.
According to the release, the cause of the accident and whether they will be any charges are still pending investigation.
