Freeland wreck leaves vehicle in ditch

April 15, 2017 6:00 pm
Kyle Jensen / The Record — A white Mazda ended up in a ditch after a collision and leaked oil from its hood.
Kyle Jensen / The Record — A white Mazda ended up in a ditch after a collision and leaked oil from its hood.

A two-car collision snarled traffic in Freeland for about 30 minutes on Thursday.

Traffic was limited to a single lane while responders cleaned up the wreckage.

The wreck occurred around 11:20 a.m. at the intersection of Highway 525 and Cameron Road. An aqua-colored Subaru Outback was northbound on the state route waiting to turn left onto Cameron Road when a white Mazda sedan collided with the Subaru from behind.

The Mazda swerved off the road to the right and into a ditch on the side of Cameron Road heading towards Nichols Brothers Boat Builders. The Subaru pulled over on the opposite of Cameron Road heading towards the Freeland fire station. Both vehicles had to be towed.

Nobody was injured in the incident. Deputy Scott Fortin with the Island County Sheriff’s Office investigated the crash, but declined to release the names of the drivers involved.

The Mazda, which had the Oak Harbor Auto Plus insignia on the side of the vehicle, leaked what appeared to be a large amount of oil into the ditch. According to South Whidbey Fire/EMS firefighter William Piepenbrink, the district lacked the equipment to clean up the spill so it had to be left behind. He added that the clean-up is the state’s responsibility.