State Patrol motorcycle troopers injured in crash near Alder in Pierce County

Two Washington State Patrol troopers on motorcycles escaped serious injury when they were involved in a Saturday morning crash that shut traffic in both directions on Highway 7 in Pierce County for several hours.

Patrol Sgt. Freddy Williams said the troopers were riding north side-by-side on Highway 7 when a vehicle driven by a 72-year-old Spanaway woman attempted to turn left into the highway's southbound lane from Alder Cutoff Road.

The troopers didn't have time to avoid the collision, Williams said.

Trooper Willie Boxhoorn, 40, a 14-year Patrol veteran, was taken by ambulance to Seattle's Harborview Medical Center, where she was treated for a broken hand.

Trooper Tony Brock, 37, an 11-year veteran, at first appeared to have more serious injuries and was airlifted to Harborview, Williams said, but he suffered only facial cuts and bumps and bruises.

The Spanaway woman was taken to a Puyallup hospital, where she was treated and released, Williams said.

The crash, which occurred between 10 and 10:30 a.m., backed up traffic significantly on a stretch of highway heavily used by motorists traveling between the Seattle and Tacoma areas and the Paradise entrance to Mount Rainier National Park.

Keith Ervin: 206-464-2105 or kervin@seattletimes.com.