Driver sent to hospital after flipping stolen car

The driver of an unreported stolen car was taken to the hospital Saturday evening after the vehicle crashed into another car and flipped end over end on River Road.

The northbound lanes of River Road between Oakleigh and McClure lanes were blocked after the 6:30 p.m. crash.

Eugene police Lt. Doug Mozan said the stolen 2010 Toyota Camry driving southbound around the 900 block of River Road veered for “reasons unknown” into the northbound lane, colliding with a 1992 Buick Century that was traveling northbound.

Mozan said it appears the Camry crossed the center lane, crossed the northbound lanes, hit a tree on the east side of the street, ricocheted into the Buick, and then flipped end over end. The Camry came to rest on its wheels facing north in a northbound lane.

The driver of the Camry, who is not being identified as the investigation continues, was taken to PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend with unknown injuries, Mozan said.

The 22-year-old driver of the Buick, Misty Blue Waters, of Eugene, said she was heading home from donating plasma when the it happened.

“I noticed him just kind of drifting out here,” said a shaken-up but uninjured Waters, sitting at nearby Toxic Wings and Fries after talking to police. “I wasn’t sure if he was turning or what. And the next thing I know, my car was being smashed.”

She said the Camry hit the tree and then the force of that knocked the back end of the Camry into the front end of her car.

By the time she got out of the car, she said, the other driver was already out of the car, laying on the ground.

“I’ve never been in an accident,” Waters said. “It’s weird. I didn’t like it.”

Both vehicles sustained heavy damage. The Camry’s windows were shattered, and one of its wheels came off during the crash.

Police found stolen property unrelated to the car inside the Camry, Mozan said.

“We’re not sure what the factors are. Whether alcohol is a factor, we’re still investigating,” Mozan said at the scene.