Child crawls out of wreckage for help after car falls down Kelso embankment

LONGVIEW — A man is dead, and three children were injured after their car crashed 15 feet down an embankment in Kelso Sunday morning.

A 7-year-old crawled from the wreckage, climbed the embankment and flagged a driver to call 911, according to Cowlitz 2 Fire & Rescue officials.

Responders arrived to the accident just before 11 a.m., near Pacific and Ostrander avenues, north of Ostrander Grocery.

The car was found about 50 feet away from the roadway, where first responders removed two people from the vehicle with hydraulic tools.

The driver, a man, was declared dead at the scene, a press release states.

The 7-year-old and a 2-year-old were taken to PeaceHealth St. John’s Medical Center in Longview for minor injuries, while Life Flight flew a 9-year-old to OHSU Hospital in Portland for multiple injuries.

Washington State Patrol is investigating the crash and two fire engines, a ladder truck, three support vehicles as well as three fire chiefs responded to the scene.