2 dump truck drivers die in fiery head-on crash in Grant County

MATTAWA, Wash. -- Two dump truck drivers were killed Wednesday in a fiery head-on collision near Mattawa, the Grant County Sheriff's Office said.

Sheriff's deputies and other responders were called about 9:30 a.m. to County Road O-Southwest and County Road 27-Southwest, about four miles southeast of Mattawa, where they found two dump trucks had collided and caught fire.

The sheriff's office said investigators reported that a 2007 Peterbilt dump truck loaded with gravel and driven by Bruce Patnode, 53, of Yakima, was headed northbound on Road O-SW approaching Road 27-SW when it crossed the centerline and crashed head-on with a southbound 2000 Kenworth dump truck towing a dump trailer. The second truck was driven by Dale Peters, 45, of Selah.

Both Patnode and Peters were ejected from their trucks and died at the scene. The trucks burst into flames, the sheriff's office said.