A Saturday drive on Mount Baker Highway turned deadly when a 62-year-old Ferndale man was killed in a head-on collision that shut down the rural two-lane route for hours. Emergency crews pronounced the man dead at the scene, and the other driver was rushed to a hospital with serious injuries, authorities said.
The victim was identified as Allen York, 62, of Ferndale. According to a Washington State Patrol news release reported by Cascadia Daily News, York was driving westbound in a 2009 Mazda 3 shortly after 10:30 a.m. when his car crossed the center line and slammed into an oncoming 1992 Toyota 4Runner near milepost 19, north of Bell Creek Road.
The eastbound driver, 27-year-old Jayde Laux of Maple Falls, was taken to PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center with serious injuries, as reported by My Bellingham Now. Troopers said both drivers were wearing seat belts, and initial findings indicate that drugs or alcohol did not contribute to the crash.
“Sadly, there is one fatality and one seriously injured,” Trooper Kelsey Harding wrote in an early update on the collision, according to KIRO 7. The Washington State Department of Transportation reported the full closure near Bell Creek Road and urged drivers to expect delays while first responders and investigators worked at the scene.
Highway blocked while troopers investigated
State troopers shut down both directions of SR 542 for roughly four hours as they documented the crash scene, collected evidence, and removed the damaged vehicles before reopening the highway later that afternoon, according to local coverage. A consolidated account of the patrol memo and the incident timeline is available through PNW Daily.
The Washington State Patrol is still investigating the collision and, aside from confirming that York’s vehicle crossed the center line, has not released further details about what led up to the impact, Cascadia Daily News reported. Officials are asking anyone who witnessed the crash or has additional information to contact state troopers as they work to piece together exactly what happened.
