KTUU.com | Alaska's news and information source | Surviving victim in fatal crash identified

Surviving victim in fatal crash identified

by Andrew Hinkelman, Kortnie Westfall and Christine Kim
Thursday, November 5, 2009

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Anchorage Police say that one of the drivers involved in Thursday night's fatal accident on the Seward Highway had been called in twice as a suspected drunk driver in the half-hour before the collision and has at least two arrests for DUI.

According to court records Lori Phillips, 55 of Anchorage, was arrested in March of this year for driving under the influence while on probation for a 2005 DUI conviction, which included an eluding police charge. She was driving with a revoked license.

Lt. Dave Parker said that a hair salon in Anchorage called and reported that Phillips may have been driving under the influence at 5:29 p.m. Police broadcast a locate alert to available units to watch for the vehicle.

Phillips apparently went south on the Seward Highway, and eventually turned back around and headed north. A Department of Transportation worker at the scales then reported her as a suspected drunk driver at 5:49 p.m.

One minute later the white SUV crossed into the southbound lane and hit a red Toyota sedan head-on just north of the intersection with Old Seward Highway, according to witnesses. The SUV came to rest in the southbound turn lane, having done a 180. The Toyota careened into the ditch on the west side of the road.

The male driver of the sedan was pronounced dead at the scene. A female passenger -- 29-year-old Joyua Stovall of Anchorage -- was transported to Providence Alaska Medical Center in serious, unstable condition. The driver's name has not yet been released, pending notification of next of kin.

Phillips was transported to Alaska Native Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.

This is the ninth fatality on the Seward Highway this year between Anchorage and Girdwood.

The Seward Highway was reopened shortly after 11 p.m.

Contact Andrew Hinkelman at ahinkelman@ktuu.com, Kortnie Westfall at kwestfall@ktuu.com and Christine Kim at ckim@ktuu.com