Head-on collison kills Oak Harbor woman

An Oak Harbor woman died Tuesday morning as the result of a head-on collision on Highway 20 north of town.

At approximately 7:30 a.m., 19-year-old Christopher Mikles of Oak Harbor was southbound in a 1990 Plymouth Acclaim on Highway 20 and crossed the center line. He collided with an oncoming 1995 Acclaim driven by 73-year-old Pansy McClung. The collision took place just south of the intersection at Monkey Hill Road.

Beau Bayliss, an Oak Harbor resident heading to work in Anacortes, witnessed the collision.

“I saw them pull apart from each other and start spinning,” Bayliss said of the two Plymouths. After colliding, the cars stopped approximately 250 feet from each other on opposite sides of the highway.

Fire District 2 Chief Marv Koorn said firefighters had to remove the roof, pop the door and lift the dash to pull the man out of his car. He added that from the time of the first alarm, it took emergency workers 38 minutes to complete the extraction.

McClung died at the scene. State Trooper Ryan Tanner said that McClung’s relatives were notified.

Mikles, a Navy man, was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center where he is listed in serious condition.

Andrew Kaynyzewski, a 10-year-old resident of Anacortes, was a passenger in McClung’s car. The boy was transported to the hospital and released.

Even though the accident is still under investigation, Tanner said it appeared that Mikles crossed the center line and plowed into McClung’s car.

Traffic on Whidbey Island was tied up for approximately three hours. Highway 20 was eventually closed and traffic detoured onto Jones and Monkey Hill roads until the cars were removed.

Fire District 2 and Whidbey Island Naval Air Station personnel responded to the accident.

At about the same time, a seven car pile-up occurred on the other end of the island at the corner of Maxwelton Road and Highway 525 near Clinton.

Four students from South Whidbey High School were taken to Whidbey General Hospital as a result of the multiple-car collision.

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