A Battle Ground man is recovering from injuries suffered in a single-car crash on New Year’s Eve in Woodland that killed the driver.
Passenger Matthew Hance, 25, was listed in satisfactory condition at PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center.
Christopher Beacock, 28, of Woodland was driving a 2003 Ford Mustang when it went off the roadway and down a 60-foot embankment near the 800 block of Insel Road at around 10:40 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office.
Hance and 33-year-old Nicholas Ackerill of Ridgefield were taken to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver. Ackerill was not listed in the public directory at the hospital on Monday.
All three had just left Beacock’s home, less than a mile from the crash scene, authorities said. Witnesses reported that the car was traveling at high speeds and failed to make a corner when it went off the road, according to the sheriff’s office. Hance, the owner of the car, was reportedly letting Beacock “test drive” it, according to the sheriff’s office.
Investigators have to wait for the results of a toxicology report before they can determine whether alcohol was a factor in the crash.
