Police still investigating Agate Pass accident; one driver released from hospital

Bainbridge Island police are still investigating the accident that shut down the Agate Pass Bridge and brought island roads to a standstill.

Bainbridge Island police are still investigating the accident that shut down the Agate Pass Bridge and brought island roads to a standstill.

The accident on March 4 occurred just before the Agate Pass Bridge on Highway 305 near Reitan Road. Islanders Barbara Maclearnsberry and Michael Parker were driving in opposite directions and collided with one another head-on.

Maclearnsberry was traveling southbound in a Kia Sedona minivan when she crossed the center line and struck a Lexus sedan driven by Parker. Witnesses to the accident told police that there was little time for either driver to avoid the crash.

Both cars spun counterclockwise in the road. The impact caused the rear end of Parker’s car to lift off the ground as it rotated, and it landed on a guard rail.

Parker, 54, was seriously hurt in the crash and sustained a broken arm and legs, as well as head injuries. A police official said last week that emergency responders initially thought he might not survive the accident.

Maclearnsberry, 77, sustained lower leg, wrist and chest injuries.

Both drivers were airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

Maclearnsberry has since been released from the hospital, while Parker was in satisfactory condition, according to an update from hospital officials late last week.