RV loses brakes in Port Angeles, crashes into 3 other vehicles

Three members of a family from Missouri are in the hospital after their recreational vehicle's brakes failed when they were leaving Olympic National Park, causing the driver to lose control, slam into three other vehicles and drop into a ravine Tuesday afternoon.

The RV driver, 51-year-old Lonnie Owens, is in critical condition in Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. His wife and one of his children are stable at Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles.

Sixteen people were involved in the accident, including three people from Bellevue, said Port Angeles city spokeswoman Teresa Pierce.

Port Angeles fire officials responded to the accident shortly after 3 p.m. A fire official said this morning that 12 people were transported to Olympic Medical Center, but a spokeswoman for the medical center said 15 people were treated there at some point yesterday and all but four were discharged before midnight.

The motor home was leaving Hurricane Ridge when the brakes stopped functioning properly, said Capt. James Mason of Port Angeles Fire Department.

The driver was unable to stop when the vehicle reached the intersection at Park Avenue and Mount Angeles Road, where it hit a Buick Rendezvous carrying two people from Florida, said Pierce.

Attempting to avoid hitting other cars from behind, Owens moved into oncoming traffic and continued to pick up speed, said Mason. The RV then hit a Ford Explorer and Chevy Impala at Race Street and Lauridsen Boulevard, forcing the RV off the road and through a railing. The RV dropped into the 25-foot-deep gully and landed in a wooded area near some houses, said Pierce.

Cpl. Bruce Knight of the Port Angeles Police Department said the RV was going about 70 miles an hour at one point.

"It was an unforeseen failure, as far as we can tell there was no indication there was any negligence on anyone's part," Knight said.

Police continue to investigate the accident.

Christina Siderius: csiderius@seattletimes.com