Former C-Falls man killed in Plains wreck

Matt Unrau / For the Hungry Horse News

Raymond Murphy, 72, of Plains died from injuries suffered in a head-on collision last Thursday between his Ford pickup and a semi truck west of Plains. Murphy died while being life-flighted to Missoula. He suffered two broken arms, a broken femur, severe lacerations and other injuries, according to an initial assessment on the scene.

Murphy is a former resident of Columbia Falls.

Plains-Paradise Rural Fire Department Assistant Chief Lee Mercier made the initial assessment.

At approximately 1 p.m. witnesses saw Murphy heading west on Highway 200 about two miles west of Plains and drift over into the left lane. That forced Lance Walden with Hanson Trucking of Columbia Falls — heading east — to move halfway into the ditch, according to the report.

However, Murphy's pickup hit the semi. The impact was on the front driver's side of each vehicle. This caused the pickup to spin past the semi and the semi to skid to a stop — sitting high-centered and perpendicular across the road.

"I tried to miss him, but I couldn't get over anymore without rolling the truck and I thought I was going to anyway," Walden said at the scene. He did not sustain any injuries.

Debbie Griggs was sitting with her husband outside of Archery Pro Shop eating her lunch when she witnessed the accident. After seeing Murphy drift over into the left lane she heard several explosions from the collision and popping of tires.

Then she ran the 100 yards to the semi and then to Murphy's pickup, which was sitting upright on the road another 100 yards west of the semi. The entire front driver side of his pickup was caved in up to the door. There she saw Murphy sitting in his pickup and Walden, who was also checking on him.

Emergency personnel had to cut away the driver's side door of the pickup to reach Murphy and extricate him. He was taken by ambulance to Clark Fork Valley Hospital and died Thursday afternoon while being flown to Missoula.

Murphy's pickup was towed within a few hours of the crash. However, larger wreckers had to be called in for the semi, which blocked traffic Highway 200 for several hours.