Hood River Man Dies in Highway 35 Crash; Witness Arrested for DUII
By Tom Peterson
Hood River, Ore., Sept. 14, 2026 — A 33-year-old Hood River man died early Sunday after his Subaru Outback left its lane of travel on Highway 35, crashed through a guardrail and plunged down an embankment toward the Hood River, according to Oregon State Police.
Omar Julio Solano Delgado, 33, was driving a silver Subaru Outback south on Highway 35 near milepost 100.5 - about a mile south of Tum-A-Lum Lumber when the vehicle left the southbound lane, and went through a guardrail, OSP Lt. Jason Calloway said.
The Subaru continued down the embankment before hitting some trees and coming to an uncontrolled stop near the bottom of the slope.
Solano Delgado was pronounced dead at the scene.
A passenger in the Subaru was taken to Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital with injuries that were not considered life-threatening, Calloway said.
Troopers responded to the single-vehicle crash at about 2:36 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 13.
Calloway said investigators have not determined exactly why the Subaru left its lane. Alcohol, however, may have been a factor in the crash, he said, noting the passenger showed signs of impairment and acknowledged consuming alcohol.
The crash and subsequent investigation impacted Highway 35 for approximately one hour, according to OSP. Hood River Fire & EMS, WyEast Fire District, the Hood River County Sheriff’s Office and the Oregon Department of Transportation assisted OSP at the scene.
The investigation took another turn while troopers were working at the fatal crash scene.
According to an OSP desk log, a driver who had stopped at the scene as a witness allegedly showed several signs of impairment while speaking with a trooper.
The driver, identified as Gerardo Flores Chavez, 26, of Hood River, consented to field sobriety tests and allegedly continued to show signs of impairment, according to OSP.
Flores Chavez was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of intoxicants.
OSP reported that Flores Chavez refused a breath test, prompting a trooper to seek a search warrant. After a judge granted the warrant, Flores Chavez provided a blood-alcohol reading of 0.11%, according to the police log.
Oregon's legal blood-alcohol limit for most drivers is 0.08%.
Flores Chavez was cited for DUII, failure to install an ignition interlock device, having no operator's license and refusing a breath test, according to OSP. He was cited and released to a sober person.
The fatal crash remains under investigation.
