By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
A 14-year-old Portland girl who was allegedly driving drunk wrecked a van on Interstate 5 south of Chehalis early yesterday.
Aid and troopers called just after 3:30 a.m. to the scene near the U.S. Highway 12 and Avery Road interchange said three occupants of the vehicle were injured.
The registered owner, a 51-year-old Portland man, was a passenger in the 2006 Dodge Caravan, according to the Washington State Patrol.
The state patrol doesn’t know why an unlicensed teenager was driving with the adult in the van.
The vehicle was northbound, traveled off the roadway to the right and landed on it top, according to the state patrol.
The 14-year-old, Paris Roach, and a 16-year-old passenger, Kaliea Miller, both from Portland, were taken to Providence Centralia Hospital with bumps, bruises and scrapes, state patrol spokesperson Trooper Will Finn said.
Miller is a runaway, according to Finn.
The owner of the van, Stephan Hardy, 51, of Portland, suffered a laceration to his forehead but declined aid, according to the state patrol.
Finn said Hardy was dropped off at a nearby exit at a service station or a restaurant where he could get services or call for a ride.
Finn said they do know the girls and the man are not family to each other. The situation is still under investigation, Finn said.
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter