Vehicle crashes into Mariposa Taqueria restaurant in Edison

Kimberly Cauvel, Skagit Valley Herald, Mount Vernon, Wash.
·2 min read

Jun. 10—EDISON — Shortly after midnight Thursday morning, a car crashed into the Mariposa Taqueria in Edison, at the curve where Farm to Market Road splits into Cains Court and Gilmore Avenue.

Members of the State Patrol, the Skagit County Sheriff's Office and Skagit County Fire District No. 5 arrived by 12:26 a.m.

Mariposa co-owners and husbands Charles Atkinson and David Blakesley were also on the scene. They came to the restaurant after Blakesley heard the crash from their home down the block.

"He had taken the puppies out to the backyard ... and heard the crash, and came and got me up and we went down and the vehicle was smashed into the building," Atkinson said.

Trooper Rocky Oliphant said State Patrol received a call about the incident at 12:17 a.m. and by 12:48 the driver, a 25-year-old man from Bellingham, had been arrested for investigation of DUI.

The driver and a passenger, whose details were not provided because the passenger is a minor, reported no injuries.

"They were coming from the south and I don't think they were from the area, and they just kept going straight," Fire District 5 Chief John Leander said. "It's quite a bit of damage to the building, and obviously the car is toast. But the two occupants luckily got out by themselves."

Oliphant said a warrant for a blood sample was obtained and the driver was booked into the Skagit County Community Justice Center early Thursday morning.

"The vehicle went through the guardrail, was captured by the boulder that was placed there to capture and protect the building and occupants, and it slammed into the wall," Atkinson said. "The fact that that boulder captured the vehicle kept it from going through the entire building."

Still, the force of the collision crumpled some kitchen equipment inside the restaurant, including the gas stove and hood. The vehicle, a 2014 Audi A4, was impounded.

For Atkinson and Blakesley the damage means a temporary closure for the restaurant.

"Now we are closed for repair and I don't have an answer for how long that is going to take," Atkinson said. "It cuts off our ability to do business. It's doing real economic harm."

That comes after a challenging 14 months because of the COVID-19 pandemic for the couple's two restaurants: the Mariposa Taqueria and Tweets Café.

Atkinson said the Edison community is already offering support to get the Mariposa Taqueria back in business.

"The community has been very generous in their offers of help," he said. "This is an incredible community and we really appreciate them."

— Reporter Kimberly Cauvel: 360-416-2199, kcauvel@skagitpublishing.com, Twitter: @Kimberly_SVH, Facebook.com/bykimberlycauvel