Authorities say alcohol or drugs were involved in a one-car accident Friday afternoon on Spirit Lake Memorial Highway, just before Seaquest State Park near Castle Rock.
An injured passenger from Toutle was airlifted to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver after the accident at about 3:38 p.m., according to a Washington State Patrol press memo.
Troopers are pursuing vehicular assault and DUI charges against driver Bruce A. Barnes, 60, of Toutle.
Barnes was headed east, past the intersection for South Silver Lake Road, when he lost control of his 2015 Chevy Malibu, left the road toward the right, and hit a tree stump, the memo states.
Barnes and passenger Melissa A. Stratton, 60, also of Toutle, were injured and sent to PeaceHealth St. John Medical Center in Longview. Stratton was then airlifted to the Vancouver hospital.
A second passenger — Debra L. Fischer, 64, of Toutle — was not injured, and was wearing a seatbelt. The memo states Barnes was wearing a seatbelt as well, but Stratton was not.
The memo lists the cause of the accident as "wheels off the roadway," and the Malibu as totaled.
