Palmer woman, child among 4 dead after Parks Highway accident

WASILLA — A Palmer woman and her child are among four dead following a multi-vehicle accident on the Parks Highway Monday.

Cary Taylor-Bloomquist, 40, and her 5-year-old daughter are both dead after the accident that included Taylor-Bloomquist’s Subaru Outback, a pair of motorcycles and a GMC truck, according to the Alaska State Troopers. Jeffrey Esley, 63, and Charlene Esley, 60, both of Fairbanks, were declared dead at the scene, about Mile 156.5 of the Parks Highway.

Jeffrey Esley was driving one of the motorcycles involved in the incident, according to an AST dispatch updated late Monday night. Charlene Esley was a passenger on the motorcycle. The driver of the second motorcycle was airlifted to an Anchorage hospital with serious injuries, according to troopers. The GMC truck included an adult female and two juvenile passengers, who were transported to Wasilla by ambulance, according to the report.

According to the dispatch, the initial investigation revealed a chain reaction that began with the Subaru colliding with the first motorcycle, and then the motorcycle driven by Jeffrey Esley. The Subaru was traveling southbound on the Parks, but crossed into the northbound lane, according to troopers. After the Subaru collided with both motorcycles, the GMC collided with the Subaru, which was still in the northbound lane, according to troopers.

Taylor-Bloomquist was declared dead at the scene. Her daughter was airlifted to Providence Hospital in Anchorage, according to troopers, but was declared dead at 7:45 p.m. Monday.

Troopers received the original report of the accident at about 4:30 p.m.

The scene of the accident is about 10 miles north of Byers Lake.

As of the latest update, at about 11 p.m., Monday, AST was still on scene investigating and only one lane of traffic was open.