Driver dies after falling tree hits truck on Highway 26

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A Prineville man was killed in a weather-related crash on Highway 26 Tuesday after a tree collided with a commercial truck in Wasco County at approximately 3:26 p.m.

Oregon State police said that 52-year-old James Darron Lyda was driving eastbound on Highway 26 near Camas Prairie Road when a tree fell onto the cabin of the truck, causing Lyda to lose control and veer off the highway.

“The preliminary investigation indicated that due to winter weather, which included snow and strong winds, a large tree fell onto the cab,” OSP said.

Earlier that day, three people were killed in a separate weather-related crash on Highway 26, when a tree fell onto a pickup truck in Clatsop County.

Paramedics pronounced Lyda dead on scene. The highway was closed for approximately three hours while Oregon State Police investigated the crash. Hoodland Fire, Warm Springs Fire and the Oregon Department of Transportation also responded to the crash.