Bend woman dies in Highway 20 wreck; truck driver arrested

Oregon State Police troopers, working in cooperation with the Linn County District Attorney's Office, arrested a commercial truck driver in relation to the death of a Bend woman during a Monday afternoon traffic crash east of Sweet Home.

According to OSP Sergeant Craig Flierl, troopers arrested Billy Wayne Floyd, 28, from Las Vegas, Nevada, for manslaughter in the second degree and assault in the third degree.Sisters and Black Butte Ranch medics responded to the accident on Monday afternoon that blocked Highway 20 west of the Santiam Junction.

"That was a bad incident," said Sisters Fire Chief Taylor Robertson, who responded to the scene in a mutual aid effort with multiple jurisdictions.

The wreck involved a flatbed semi-truck hauling carnival equipment and a pickup truck pulling a travel trailer.

"Both of them were totally involved in fire and there was a significant wildfire that got going out of that, too," Robertson said.

Ethel Ann Hopkins, 63, was pronounced dead at the scene. She was a passenger in the pickup driven by her husband, Craig Scott Hopkins, 66.

About 12:45 p.m., they were eastbound on Highway 20 when they collided head-on with a westbound semi that swerved across the center line on a curve, said Sgt. Craig Flierl of Oregon State Police.

The semi was driven by Billy Wayne Floyd, 28, of Las Vegas. Police believe that excessive speed was a factor in the crash.

Other motorists pulled Craig Hopkins from the wreckage before it burned. Black Butte Ranch medics transported Hopkins to the Ranch, where an Air Link helicopter landed and transferred the patient to St. Charles Medical Center in Bend.

Floyd and his passenger, Matthew Aaron Dizick, 20, of Cottage Grove, were not hurt.

The fire burned about 1.5 acres before it was extinguished by firefighters, aided by a Weyerhaeuser helicopter. Highway 20 remained closed between mileposts 53 and 71 on the road to Sweet Home until late Monday night and it was not fully reopened until 1 a.m. on Tuesday.

Chief Robertson noted that many drivers are unaware that the dangers of mountain driving are not necessarily diminished after the ice and snow of winter is gone. In fact, heavy traffic and clear road conditions that encourage speed can make this time of year as dangerous as winter.

"Summer also has hazards with driving that we sometimes forget about," he said.

Robertson noted that heavier traffic, especially involving large vehicles, means that drivers need to be alert.

"My advice, especially on those steep grades, is to use extreme caution," he said. "Slow way down, especially in these large vehicles, but in any vehicle. Just take your time; you'll get there."

State police are seeking witnesses to the crash or earlier sightings of the semi. Anyone with information is asked to call Senior Trooper Scott Hite at 541-967-2026, ext. 4440.