Woman arrested after fleeing scene of Desert Aire injury collision

DESERT AIRE — A Desert Aire woman is in jail after she fled the scene of a collision that left her female passenger seriously injured in Desert Aire last week.

About 7:30 p.m. on June 6, emergency responders were dispatched to Desert Aire Drive at Oasis Place. The Grant County Sheriff’s Office says investigators discovered a passenger, identified as Mireya Anaya, 22, of Mattawa, in a 2001 Ford Focus was ejected from the vehicle as it rolled moments after the driver of the vehicle reportedly failed to negotiate a corner.

A witness reported seeing the female driver, later identified as Vivian E. Duarte, 23, of Desert Aire, run into a nearby mini-mart. Anaya was transported to Kadlec Medical Center in Richland, were she was treated for serious injuries and admitted to the Intensive Care Unit, according to the sheriff’s office.

Duarte eventually turned herself in Saturday morning and was booked into the Grant County Jail for felony hit-and-run and vehicular assault.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at rbyrd@columbiabasinherald.com.