A hit and run in Rainier Valley on Sunday night claimed the life of a 34-year-old male driver after a chaotic collision set a vehicle ablaze and sent it crashing into a building. According to the Seattle Police Department Blotter, the police were alerted to the incident around 9 p.m. and rushed to the corner of Martin Luther King Junior Way South and Merton Way South where the mayhem unfolded.
Per the police report, the suspect vehicle was headed south on MLK JR WY S when it struck two cars paused at a red light at the intersection. In a desperate attempt to evade the scene, the driver then reversed into the southbound lanes, ultimately careening into a nearby building causing it to catch fire. Officers arrived to find the suspect vehicle inside the edifice, fully engulfed in flames.
The Seattle Fire Department was quick to respond, pulling the car from the structure to better tackle the inferno. Tragically, the driver of the suspect vehicle was trapped inside and did not survive. A 26-year-old male passenger in the flaming vehicle managed to get out. The occupants of the other two vehicles involved in the initial collision were reportedly unharmed.
The King County Medical Examiner's office has stepped in to determine the precise cause and manner of death for the deceased, the blotter reveals. Meanwhile, detectives from the Traffic Collision Investigation Squad (TCIS) have taken the helm of the investigation, working to piece together the events that led to this fatal incident.
