The Oregon State Police are conducting an internal investigation into the circumstances surround a call made to 9-1-1 on the afternoon of June 8th reporting the crash of the car driven by a California priest. Responding officers were unable to locate the vehicle and left the scene. On July 1st, the vehicle was found at the originally reported location, with the priest and his traveling companion deceased inside.

The crashed car of a missing Calif. priest and his traveling companion was found on July 1st at the bottom of a ravine off Hwy 26.

A preliminary OSP investigation confirmed that a call was made June 8th at approximately 4:15 p.m. to Washington County emergency dispatch from a citizen advising of an eastbound red compact car that had gone off the north side of Highway 26 about 1/4 mile west of milepost 26. The caller further stated the car drove straight off the road and into the brush, was not visible from the road and it was unknown if anyone was hurt.

After making calls to start medical response, a Washington County emergency dispatcher called OSP Northern Command Center dispatch at approximately 4:20 p.m. and asked if OSP had received a call of a traffic crash on Highway 26 at milepost 26. OSP dispatch advised they had not received a call. The Washington County dispatcher advised they were starting medical response and the information indicated a compact red car was eastbound when it went off the roadway and was no longer visible.

The preliminary OSP investigation indicates an OSP trooper from the Astoria Area Command office was patrolling near milepost 13 and immediately responded to the area with emergency lights and siren activated. Upon arriving near milepost 25, the trooper slowed down and checked both sides of the highway east to milepost 27, turned and made two more passes through the two mile stretch. The area check included driving slowly on the shoulder to look for signs of a vehicle that may have gone off the road and stopping to get out checking a couple locations east of milepost 26.

"The trooper from Astoria was checking methodically, slowly, trying to find anything he could," Lt. Hastings told KGW, "and then the fire department personnel from Elsie area they were also checking."

Members of the Elsie Vine-Maple Fire Department also responded to the area checking both sides between milepost 25 and 27. They reportedly stopped and checked one of the areas the trooper had got out to check because of tire marks in the gravel on the highway shoulder. There was no vehicle in sight at that location which turned out to be about 1/2 mile east of the location where the vehicle was found Sunday.

Two OSP Fish & Wildlife Lieutenants returning from a training assignment in Astoria were also driving through the area and overheard the call. One Lieutenant was near milepost 26 and looked for any obvious signs eastbound. A trooper from the Banks work site also responded west from Manning and checked toward the general area.

No sign of a crashed vehicle was found on June 8th.

OSP is continuing the crash investigation including review of dispatch communications and interviewing officers and emergency personnel involved in the response to learn the facts related to this investigation. As of Monday afternoon, investigators have not been able to re-contact the man who made the initial report on June 8th and did not return to the crash area after making the report.