A tragic incident occurred on Tuesday morning on Interstate 5 in Linn County. According to the Oregon State Police, at 6:32 a.m., a pedestrian was struck by a southbound commercial vehicle near milepost 216. The pedestrian, identified as 61-year-old Ronald Hope Cole Jr of Harrisburg, was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.
The driver of the Kenworth truck, Timothy Alan Vinton Jr, also from Harrisburg, was reported not to have suffered any injuries from the crash. While the reasons for Cole Jr's presence on the roadway remain unclear, investigators continue to look into all potential causes of the collision thoroughly. The incident led to a two-hour delay on the highway as the Oregon State Police conducted their on-scene investigation.
With the crash causing a significant impact on the interstate's traffic flow, Oregon's State Police were assisted by the Oregon Department of Transportation in managing the scene. The authorities are making an appeal to the public for any information. They urge witnesses or those with any knowledge of the events leading up to the collision to come forward and contact OSP’s Northern Command Center. The case number given for the incident is #SP24408204, and they can be reached by phone at 800-442-0776 or by dialing *OSP (*677) from a mobile phone.
