Two vehicles towed after hitting the same elk near Hot Lake

UNION COUNTY – While modern vehicles are generally designed to avoid catastrophic failure and keep their occupants safe in the event of a crash, hitting a several hundred-pound animal at speed will still inevitably break things. Similarly, wild animals, even large ones, can be difficult to spot in time when driving, especially at night or in low visibility conditions. 

The Oregon State Police reports that, on Saturday, January 24, two separate vehicles struck the same elk in the road near Hot Lake in Union County. The initial animal strike occurred along Highway 203 near milepost 11 at around 10:15 p.m. that evening. A second vehicle later drove over the carcass as it sat in the road. Though thankfully no injuries were reported, both vehicles had to be towed from the scene due to damage. As written by the OSP in a recent press log:

“Troopers responded to a crash where a gray Toyota Rav4 struck a bull elk on the highway. After the first strike, the elk was lying in the highway when a second vehicle, a gray Toyota Highlander drove over the top of it. Both vehicles were towed due to damage, Rav4 by Rock and Sons and the Highlander by Captain Hooks. Non injury. The elk was picked up by a local farmer after being warned for being an improperly placed pedestrian.”

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Elkhorn Media Group