Preliminary information indicates two people died in Oregon in fatal traffic crashes during the 2013 Thanksgiving Holiday reporting period between 6:00 p.m., November 27, and 11:59 p.m., December 1. Oregon State Police (OSP) troopers partnered with Washington State Patrol (WSP) and California Highway Patrol (CHP) over the holiday period during an enhanced joint traffic safety effort called the “I-5 Challenge” to promote driving safety and prevent fatal crashes on Interstate 5 (I-5). Neither fatal crash in Oregon occurred on I-5. According to ODOT’s Fatality Analysis & Reporting System (FARS), the following two fatal crashes were confirmed during the holiday reporting period: * On Thursday, November 28, at approximately 1:00 a.m., a 25-year old woman died in a two-vehicle collision on Highway 20 south of Lebanon in Linn County. OSP is the lead investigating agency and alcohol is being investigated as a contributing factor. * On Sunday, December 1, at approximately 7:09 a.m., a 26-year old woman died in a two-vehicle collision on SE Orient Drive near SE Salquist Road in Gresham in Multnomah County. Gresham Police Department is the lead investigating agency. Last year, two people died in 2 separate fatal traffic crashes in Oregon during the holiday period. Three people died during each of the 2011 and 2010 Thanksgiving Holiday reporting periods. OSP troopers responded to over 120 traffic crashes, of which 7 involved a DUII driver. Approximately a quarter of the reported crashes occurred on I-5 (29 non-injury crashes / 5 injury crashes). OSP troopers reported 50 DUII arrests, slightly up from 47 DUII arrests reported last year. Twelve of the OSP DUII arrests occurred on I-5.
