Man Seriously Injured in Hit-and-Run

Date: March 15, 2010
Location: I-84 near The Dalles, Oregon
Names: Chuong Ngoc Du, [Unknown]

Oregon State Police troopers are looking for information on a vehicle and driver in a hit-and-run crash on I-84 east of The Dalles, Oregon. According to witnesses, the crash may have resulted from an intentional act.

Around 1:50 PM on March 15, 2010, Chuong Ngoc Du, 69, of Hermiston, was driving east on I-84 near milepost 98, when an unknown driver made a move that the Oregon State Police called “possibly intentional.” The unknown driver shot out in front of Du’s car, causing Du to lose control.

Du’s car crashed through the guardrail before plummeting about 30 feet down a rocky embankment, coming to rest in a slough by the side of the road. Du was seriously injured inside the car. He suffered a skull fracture and multiple broken ribs.

The vehicle that hit Du’s car left the crash site. It was last seen heading east on the freeway. Police believe the car, a black late-model Nissan Maxima with an Idaho license plate, held two people, and was driven by a white male of unknown age.

Mid-Columbia Fire & Rescue personnel arrived and helped prep Du for transport by Life Flight to Mid-Columbia Medical Center in The Dalles. He was later transferred in a second Life Flight helicopter to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center in Portland.

If you have any information regarding the other car, please call OSP Northern Command Center dispatch at 541-296-9646.

We send Du our most heartfelt wishes, and hope he recovers quickly and completely from this shocking crash.

In some hit-and-run accidents, there is what is called a “phantom vehicle.” This is a vehicle that pulled out in front of another car, or came too close to the other car, and caused the car to crash. But there is usually no physical evidence of the other car, only testimony from the injured person.

But the injured person still has options. First, you must call the police within 72 hours. Then call your insurance company within 3 days. If there was a witness, they could be called on to testify. Or, if you act quickly enough, you can have someone collect the evidence, or photograph the scene of the accident.