Driver dies after other car’s trailer detaches: Oregon cops

A 69-year-old driver was killed after another car’s trailer detached and hit him, causing his car to leave the road and crash into a telephone pole, Oregon deputies said.

Benton County Sheriff officials were dispatched around 3:50 p.m. on Jan. 4 after receiving reports of a crash on Highway 20, according to a Facebook post by the sheriff’s office.

A 42-year-old man was driving a truck and pulling an empty trailer when it detached from the truck’s hitch, plowing into a Honda Civic traveling in the other direction, officials said.

The Honda driver, a 69-year-old man from Albany, veered off the road and hit a telephone pole, according to the release.

He was transported to a local hospital and later pronounced dead, officials said.

Deputies said the other driver was uninjured.

The man was arrested on suspicion of reckless endangering, given multiple traffic tickets and released at the scene, according to the release.

Officials said the investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to call 541-230-0984.

They also advised anyone who needs to pull a trailer to review the state’s safety guidelines “to prevent another tragedy.”

Benton County is about 100 miles southwest of Portland.