South Tongass Highway Crash Kills 2 People in Ketchikan

The Ketchikan Police Department has released details on a South Tongass Highway crash that killed two people Monday night, as well as charges against a woman who allegedly drove past a stopped school bus and struck a child last week.

According to a Tuesday KPD press release, officers were informed of a single-vehicle wreck involving a four-door Subaru sedan near the 1500 block of the highway at about 9:05 p.m. Monday.

“The vehicle appeared to be travelling south when it left the roadway and struck the rock embankment on the inland side of the road,” officers wrote. “Two people in the vehicle were ejected and pronounced dead at the scene.”

The Ketchikan Daily News identified the victims as 31-year-old April Arland and 16-year-old Kiana Seierup. Passengers 16-year-old Christine Demmert and 14-year-old Royce Trout, who survived the crash, were both taken to Ketchikan General Hospital for treatment.

KPD deputy police chief Josh Dossett says it’s unclear who was driving at the time of the crash, but officers are hoping to speak with the survivors and find out.

“We are thankful this wasn’t a worse accident, but I mean, any time you lose especially a teenager it’s a tragedy in the community,” Dossett said.

According to KPD, the crash is under investigation but speed is being considered a factor. Alaska State Troopers and Ketchikan Fire Department responders provided assistance at the scene, which closed the highway until about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.

The bodies of the victims have been sent to the state medical examiner’s office in Anchorage.

In a separate incident Thursday morning, Ketchikan police responded just after 8:30 a.m. to reports of a child who had been struck by a vehicle on the 2900 block of Baranof Avenue.

Upon investigation, police learned that a school bus had been stopped on Baranof to unload students, with its red lights flashing and stop sign extended, when it was passed by a Honda Element driven by 68-year-old Doris Loeser of Ketchikan. A child who had just gotten off the bus was hit by the Element and taken to Ketchikan General Hospital for medical attention.

Loeser has been charged with third-degree assault, reckless endangerment, reckless driving, and failing to stop for a school bus with flashing red lights.

Contact Chris Klint and Mallory Peebles