Unsafe passing leads to crash, patrol says

BURBANK — Unsafe passing is being cited as the cause of a crash that resulted in one person being hospitalized Friday afternoon, Oct. 8.

Virginia L. Carpenter, 83, of Walla Walla, was taken to a Pasco hospital for injuries she sustained while riding as a passenger when her husband's vehicle crashed at about 1:22 p.m. on state Highway 124, about 15 miles east of the city, the Washington State Patrol reported.

Carpenter's husband, George S. Carpenter, 93, of Walla Walla, was not injured, the patrol reported.

The crash occurred when George Carpenter attempted to pass at truck and double trailer driven by Miguel A. Ruelas Valdovinas, 34, of Pasco, the patrol said.

Carpenter's 2014 Ford Edge struck Valdovinas' 2018 Western Star 5700XE truck, the patrol said. Valdovinas was not injured.

All three crash victims were wearing seatbelts, the patrol reported, noting the cause of the crash was unsafe passing.

Neither drugs nor alcohol was a factor, the patrol said.