Tree line proposed in Albany where car was swept away, killing 2 | News

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — City engineers in Albany want to plant a row of trees to mark a clear line between a parking lot and a creek where two people died when floodwaters from a rainstorm swept their car away.

Witnesses said Periwinkle Creek rose quickly on Jan. 18 and was level with the parking lot at a supermarket.

Catherine McLaughlin, 18, and her 20-month-old son, Aiden, drowned when the car was sucked into the creek and then a culvert under an intersection.

There's a row of low shrubs along the parking lot now, and the city owns land along the creek, where there's a bike path.

The Albany Democrat-Herald reported Friday that there have been calls for a more conspicuous boundary to prevent a similar accident, and the public works department proposed a row of leafy trees that could also serve as a memorial to the accident victims.

Public Works Director Mark Shepard said the idea is a "soft" barrier to give drivers in the parking lot a visual clue during high water as to where the lot ends. A plan and cost estimate have yet to be drawn up, he said.

The city may put a rail above the entrance to the culvert, as well, he said.

The driver of the car, Christopher Wilgus, 24, was able to escape and suffered few injuries, but his 5-year-old son, Maliki Wilgus, was critically injured.

The youth has been transferred from Doernbecher Children's Hospital in Portland to another hospital for up to six weeks of rehabilitation, said his grandfather, Karl Wilgus.

"He remains hospitalized," said Karl Wilgus. "He is, however, doing extremely well, and our family is very pleased."

The storm damage was most serious in the central part of the Willamette Valley.

Preliminary estimates in nine counties amounted to $38 million, a figure expected to grow. That covered housing, businesses, agriculture and infrastructure but not personal losses.

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Information from: Albany Democrat-Herald, http://www.dhonline.com

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press