ARLINGTON — A Bothell man died Saturday after being hit by a pickup in I-5 southbound lanes near Smokey Point.
Gerald Olmstead was riding in a Dodge Ram driven by his 29-year-old son, Patrick D. Groves of Marysville, who pulled the truck onto the highway’s shoulder. The 51-year-old Olmstead got out to secure the load in the truck’s bed as it was losing debris, while his son stayed in the cab, a Washington State Patrol news release says.
At 10:38 a.m., traffic suddenly and dramatically slowed down in the nearest lane, prompting 23-year-old Anthony J. Richardson of Arlington to swerve into the shoulder to avoid hitting the cars in front of him, the patrol says.
But his Toyota Tundra hit the Dodge Ram and Olmstead, who was still standing outside the pickup.
He died at the scene. His son and the driver of the Toyota were not injured, Trooper Mark Francis said.
This article originally published in The Arlington Times.
