Drunk driver flips his car, on NE 82nd Ave. of Roses

He drank, drove recklessly, wrecked his car, and got a trip to the hospital. You won’t believe what happened to the car he hit …

The fancy wheels and low-profile tires on this Mitsubishi won’t be going ’round and ’round – perhaps ever again – after its accused drunken driver flipped it, on NE 82nd Avenue of Roses.

Story and photos by David F. Ashton
The party ended on Sunday, May 11, at precisely 9:26 pm, for a man police identified as 35-year-old Rogers Miranda.

The youthful-looking driver of the Kia SUV which Miranda hit filled us in, from his own point of view: “We were sitting in the [northbound] left-turn lane on 82nd, waiting for the green light, to turn [west] on NE Fremont Street. This car came through the intersection of really fast, hit me, and rolled over.”

It appears as if Miranda’s 1998 Mitsubishi – seen here with its doors pried open, so he and his passenger could get out – won’t be speeding around outer East Portland anymore.

Pried out with rescue tools
“We pulled up we had one car on its top,” reported Portland Fire & Rescue’s Lt. Erik Oatfield, attached to Station 12. “There were two people inside, unable to get out of their seat belts. Both of them were hanging from their seat belts.”

The doors were jammed, Oatfield said, so the crews used a Hurst Tool [“Jaws of Life”] to pop one door open, and a Halligan [steel pry-bar] to open the other. Both occupants were transported by ambulance for medical evaluation, he added.

We were surprised at how little apparent damage the Kia suffered when it was hit. The inset shows the bent wheel.

Victims walk away
The Kia SUV seemed to sustain little damage in the collision – although the front driver-side tire was pushed in at a 45° angle, making the vehicle undrivable. All of its occupants walked away the wreck.

As for the driver of the car that hit the Kia, “Miranda was charged with DUII and Reckless Driving,” said Portland Police Bureau spokesman Sgt. Brian Schmautz, after looking at the official reports.

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