Gig Harbor Woman, 89, Drives Wrong Way Down SR 16

GIG HARBOR, WA - Washington State Patrol is reporting that an 89-year-old woman from Gig Harbor drove the wrong way down SR 16 early Monday morning and caused a crash. The woman was minorly injured, but the man driving the car she allegedly hit was not.

Just after 1 a.m. Monday, Barbara Marontate, of Gig Harbor, entered SR 16 at Sedgewick Drive in Port Orchard. She began driving westbound in the eastbound lanes, according to state patrol.

Marontate crashed head-on into a vehicle going in the right direction driven by Martino Locke Jr., 21, of Bremerton. Both cars were seriously damaged, but only Marontate was taken to the hospital.

This is the second time over the past week that an elderly driver has gone the wrong way on SR 16.

Last Wednesday, a 94-year-old man drove the wrong way across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. The driver made it all the way to the Gig Harbor side of the bridge from Tacoma. He was stopped and cited by a Pierce County deputy who happened to be driving across the bridge.

Image via Washington State Patrol