PORTLAND, OR (KPTV) – A Portland man is facing charges after police say he hit and killed two people along Interstate 5 over the weekend.
Around 2:20 a.m. Saturday morning, Portland police say an SUV broke down on the side of I-5 southbound near the I-405 interchange.
Police say two women who were inside got out, and another car stopped to help in the center of the freeway split. The women tried to cross the highway to get to that car but were hit and killed by a driver.
Police say 25-year-old Michael Hanson was that driver. Hanson is now facing negligent homicide charges.
“It’s a really difficult time for us right now,” Boys and Girls Club of Portland CEO, Terry Johnson said. “It’s a very tragic loss to our community.”
Johnson says the two women who were killed are Kathryn Chavez and Paris Green.
He said Chavez was the site director of the Wattles Club in southeast Portland, and Green previously worked for the Wattles Club as its receptionist.“Both of them were kindred spirits,” Johnson said. “They were both kind, they were loving, they were very nurturing and they cared so much about the Wattles Club and the work that they were doing with kids and families.“He said the Boys and Girls Club of Portland notified employees, kids and their families of their deaths.
Johnson whose been the new CEO for three weeks said he just met Chavez.
“We were actually just here a week ago unveiling a new basketball court, and she was so proud to show off all the work that she had been doing with this club over the past several years,” Johnson said. “And you know she made these big thank you posters that the kids all designed to present to the sponsors who made the new basketball court possible.”
He said Green was a bright energy for the Wattles Club.
“She was just really had a bubbly spirit and was really outgoing and so any time someone walked in the club whether it was a kid or staff or a family she was always there to receive them and to make them feel really welcome,” Johnson said.
Johnson says the two were friends even before they started working for the Boys and Girls Club.
If you break down on the side of the road, here are some tips from the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT):
Find a safe spot to pull over, as far away from traffic as possible. Activate your hazard lights to make your car visible. Stay in your car, and call for assistance. If you have to leave your vehicle, check carefully for traffic and exit on the side away from traffic. Avoid crossing the road.