Lewis County Sirens.com

Updated at 10:01 a.m.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – It was a Chehalis man who died in the motorcycle wreck yesterday morning on Interstate 5.

It’s unknown exactly what transpired between him and a pickup truck that caused the motorcycle to go down and slide to the shoulder ejecting the rider onto the roadway, but he was then run over by a semi truck, according to the Washington State Patrol.

Michael T. Fields, 57, of Chehalis, was dead at the scene when responders arrived, according to authorities.

The accident about 5 o’clock yesterday morning in the northbound lanes at milepost 80 just south of Centralia shut down the freeway for hours while detectives investigated.

A license plate found at the scene belonging to a pickup truck found burning not far from the freeway in south Lewis County led to the arrest of its owner for hit and run and arson, according to the Washington State Patrol.

It was a WSDOT worker who spotted heavy black smoke off Camus Road near the Gospodor monuments and firefighters dispatched at 8:50 a.m. found the truck fully engulfed in flames, according to authorities.

The owner of the red 2001 Chevrolet Silverado called to report it stolen yesterday afternoon, and after meeting with detectives was booked into the Lewis County Jail, Trooper Will Finn said this morning.

“It doesn’t sound like there was a reason he left the scene, he just panicked and didn’t know what to do,” Finn said. “If he’d have stuck around, it would have been just an unfortunate accident, but now he’s facing two felonies.”

“It’s just a sad story all the way around,” he said.

Field’s 2012 Harley Davidson FLTRU was impounded. The burned Chevrolet Silverado was impounded.

The driver of the 2018 Freightliner, a 64-year-old man from Phoenix, was uninjured, according to the state patrol.

Finn said detectives are still trying to figure out exactly the nature of the contact between the pickup and Field’s motorcycle.

“It may have been a lane change, they’re still investigating,” he said.
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For background, read “News brief: I-5 freeway fatality under investigation” from Tuesday April 25, 2017, here

Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter

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