A 23-year-old Yakima man is dead today as a result of a crash yesterday that started a wildfire.
Cody J. Gadley died after beingthrown from a 1994 Nissan Pathfinder he was riding in at about 1:30 p.m. yesterday. The Washington State Patrol said he was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.
The vehicle was driven by Tawnya S. Briggs, 19, also of Yakima.
Troopers said she was eastbound on Interstate 82 at Milepost 11, when she drifted to the left, overcorrected and veered hard to the right sending the vehicle off the freeway.
It flipped, caught fire and became engulfed in flames, setting nearby brush ablaze, troopers said..
Briggs was injured and transported to a Yakima hospital, as were two other passengers. They are Kimberley C. Pulliam, 17, of Ephrata, and Jed M. Robinson, 36, of Moses Lake, the State Patrol said.
Gadley was the only occupant not wearing a seat belt, troopers said.
They said drugs or alcohol are believed to have contributed to the crash.
The Pathfinder was totaled in the crash, which is still under investigation, troopers said.
Charges are pending the results of the investigation.