SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — The Washington State Patrol (WSP) has identified a man killed in a collision with a moose earlier this month on I-90, about 12 miles west of Spokane.
The deadly collision happened on Jan. 12, 2022 around 6:15 p.m. WSP said the moose entered the freeway at milepost 264, southwest of Clear Lake. A 2010 Mazda3 traveling westbound on I-90 hit the moose in the left lane.
The driver was taken to Sacred Heart Medical Center. According to a news release from WSP, the man died in the hospital a few days later, on Jan. 15,. WSP has identified the man as 63-year-old Scott Brodie from Ritzville.
A passenger in the vehicle, also from Ritzville, was hurt. The State Patrol said both people were wearing their seatbelts.
Moose in Washington
Moose are not uncommon in Washington state with several reports of collisions and road closures caused by moose in recent years.
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife reports there were approximately 5,000 moose estimated to live in Washington State, as of 2015.
The majority of the moose in Washington are found in the Selkirk Mountains (Pend Oreille, Stevens, Ferry, and Spokane counties) with smaller populations in the north Cascades, Okanogan, and Blue Mountains, according to a post on the WDFW website.
"With its great size and forage demands, the home range of the average moose in any given season is approximately three to six square miles, although they habitually wander much further," WDFW said.