FEBRUARY 19, 2015
COLUMBIA COUNTY, OREGON
A 60-year-old Scappoose man was killed Thursday morning, February
19, when the log truck he was driving ran off the road on Apiary Road.
According to the Columbia County Sheriff's Office, Martin
Koch died at the scene after he lost control of his truck loaded with logs near
Camp Wilkerson at 6:48 a.m. The cause of the crash was investigated by the
sheriff's office and Oregon State Police. Koch was the only one involved in the
crash.
Columbia County Sheriff Jeff Dickerson said investigators aren't
sure why Koch went off the road. They don't believe he was speeding.
“He went off the road and hit some trees,” Dickerson noted.
“There was no obvious reason for why he would have gone off the road.”
The incident left part of the highway closed as fire and
sheriff's crews cleared the scene. Emergency responders finally got the road
cleared at 2:43 p.m.
Thursday, according to the sheriff's office.