Teen driver in Saturday I-5 rollover wreck in Bellingham arrested
The driver whose car rolled off Interstate 5 in Bellingham, injuring all five people in the car, Saturday, March 4, was booked into Whatcom County juvenile detention, according to the Washington State Patrol.
The unnamed 17-year-old girl from Ferndale was arrested on suspicion of vehicular assault and DUI, Trooper Kelsey Harding told The Bellingham Herald Tuesday, March 7.
“The cause of the collision and reports of possible racing prior to the collision are still under investigation,” Harding said.
Passengers in the wrecked car included an 18-year-old man from Ferndale, a 15-year-old girl from Lynden, a 16-year-old girl from Ferndale and a 17-year-old girl from Lake Forrest Park, Wash.
All five were taken to St. Joseph hospital in Bellingham. The driver was medically cleared before being booked, the trooper said.
The adult man was treated and released, according to a hospital spokesperson Sunday, March 5. The names of the teens were not released by the state patrol, so no further information about their injuries is available.
Two passengers sustained serious injuries including broken bones, Harding said.
The 2018 Hyundai Elantra was speeding northbound on I-5 south of Old Fairhaven Parkway just before 11 p.m. Saturday, according to the state patrol, when it left the roadway and rolled multiple times, landing on its roof on the road’s left shoulder.
Bellingham Herald reporter Jack Belcher contributed to this story.
This story was originally published March 7, 2023 at 1:43 PM.
