Wash. Sheriff's Sergeant Near Retirement Fatally Struck while Moving Hay Bale off Road

A Spokane County sheriff's sergeant weeks from retirement was struck and killed Saturday morning on Interstate 90 while trying to move a bale of hay from the freeway, about 10 miles west of Spokane.

Sgt. Kenneth Salas, 59, was helping a Spokane trucker whose hay bale came loose around 7:40 a.m. while traveling east near mile marker 270, Washington State Patrol spokesperson Sgt. Greg Riddell said.

Riddell said the sergeant used his patrol car to block the lane with the hay bale and tried to remove it from the road with the trucker, near the exit to Four Lakes. A motorcycle collided with the patrol vehicle and the sergeant, who was on the left side of the road. The patrol car had its emergency lights on, according to the State Patrol.

Salas died at a hospital. The motorcyclist was in serious condition but expected to recover, Riddell said. He was identified as a 39-year-old man from Malden, Whitman County, who was riding a Harley Davidson Iron 883. Troopers did not suspect drugs or alcohol were a factor.

The hay truck driver, 45, was not injured.

The dynamics of the crash remained under investigation, but some details were discussed at a news conference held Saturday afternoon by Sheriff John Nowels.

As Salas and the truck driver were moving the hay bale, the driver of a third vehicle in the left lane noticed the road hazard and moved to the right lane, according to The Spokesman-Review. The motorcyclist was following that vehicle and saw the stopped patrol car. He reportedly slowed, but still struck the patrol car and Salas.

Salas used his radio to call for an ambulance, Nowels said. Before long, Salas' fellow deputies, as well as emergency responders, were providing medical aid.

After his death, Salas’ body was taken to the Spokane County medical examiner’s office in a procession of vehicles with the Spokane County sheriff’s office, Spokane Police Department, State Patrol, Spokane Valley Police Department and Spokane Fire Department, The Spokesman-Review reported.

Salas served 34 years in law enforcement, according to the sheriff's office. He began his career as a Spokane County corrections officer before becoming a patrol deputy.

In 2004, he was named a detective and corporal. In 2009, he was promoted to sergeant and assigned as the downtown day-shift patrol supervisor.

Salas planned to retire next month and had 30 work shifts left before his death, Nowels said to reporters.

He was not only a member of the Sheriff’s Office, he was also a valued and cherished member of our law enforcement family," according to a statement from the sheriff's office. "In addition to his law enforcement career, Sergeant Salas also served our Country for over two decades in the United States Air Force, retiring as a Technical Sergeant with the Washington State Air National Guard.

He is survived by his wife, who asked for privacy.

Seattle Times staff reporter Nicholas Deshais contributed to this story.

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