Head-on wreck killed passenger on South Bay Road. Investigators suspect DUI

A 44-year-old woman who died in a head-on crash on South Bay Road Saturday morning was a passenger in the vehicle and the driver is suspected of driving under the influence.

That’s according to Thurston County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Mike Brooks, who provided an update on Tuesday.

About 8:30 a.m., the driver — a woman in her mid-30s — and the 44-year-old passenger were headed north on South Bay Road.

The driver allegedly crossed the center line and crashed into a southbound vehicle in the 800 block of South Bay Road, Brooks said.

The 44-year-old woman died at the scene, while the driver was injured and taken to Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia. The driver is suspected of vehicular homicide, vehicular assault and DUI, he said. Brooks said she is still in the hospital and, as of Tuesday, has not been booked into jail.

She crashed into a vehicle being driven by a woman in her early 40s, he said. She, too, was injured and taken to Providence St. Peter Hospital.

The Thurston County Coroner’s Office is still working to identify the 44-year-old woman.