Two die in accident that shut Parks Highway for hours

CANTWELL — A stretch of the Parks Highway closed for a double-fatal accident much of the afternoon is expected to be open to traffic again by about 9 p.m., Alaska State Troopers report.

Two people died and five others injured when a Hyundai Sonata collided with a GMC truck at Mile 178 Parks Highway, AST spokeswoman Beth Ipsen said. Of four people in the Hyundai, two were declared dead at the scene and two others transported to hospitals with serious injuries.

Pending notification of next of kin, the identities of those in the Hyundai have not been released, she said.

In the GMC, driver Ann Peeples, 68, Palmer, was injured, as were her two passengers, 41-year-old Doris Thomas of Palmer and Deborah Gilcrest, 51, Anchorage, Ipsen said.

“All of (the surviving victims) were injured and taken to the hospital for treatment,” she said.

The accident closed the Parks Highway for more than five hours before one lane was reopened at about 7 p.m., Ipsen said, adding troopers were still at the scene investigating.

Details about what may have caused the accident are “sketchy,” and a report will be filed when troopers finish their investigation at the scene, she said.