Quilcene motorcyclists in deadly wreck identified

PORT TOWNSEND — The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office has released the names of the man who died and the woman who was injured in a motorcycle wreck Monday afternoon on Center Road.

Gustave “John” Brush, 77, of Quilcene, who had been driving the motorcycle, died on the scene.

Gayle Johnson, 70, also of Quilcene, was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle after the wreck, said Art Frank, chief criminal deputy with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office ,late Tuesday.

Johnson was treated and discharged from Harborview on Monday night, the hospital reported Wednesday.

Harborview staff were not able to comment on the extent of her injuries.

The Sheriff’s Office’s investigation of the wreck found that Brush had hit a large bird, which caused him to swerve off the road in the 5000 block of Center Road before the intersection of Eaglemount Road and McMillan Road.

East Jefferson Fire-Rescue firefighters were the first on the scene and attempted to revive the motorcycle driver, but their attempts were ultimately unsuccessful.

His passenger was unconscious when first responders arrived, according to Bill Beezley of East Jefferson Fire-Rescue.

She was airlifted from the intersection of Eaglemount and McMillan roads.

The area was closed to traffic in both directions from roughly 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday due to the accident, airlift and the subsequent investigation by the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.

More in News

Broadband provider says FCC action would be ‘devastating’ to operations

CresComm WiFi serves areas in Joyce, Forks and Lake Sutherland

Public safety tax is passed

Funds could be used on range of services

Stevens Middle School eighth-grader Linda Venuti, left, and seventh-graders Noah Larsen and Airabella Rogers pour through the contents of a time capsule found in August by electrical contractors working on the new school scheduled to open in 2028. The time capsule was buried by sixth graders in 1989. (Paula Hunt/Peninsula Daily News)
Middle school students open capsule from 1989

Phone book, TV Guide among items left behind more than 30 years ago

Electronic edition of newspaper set Thursday

Peninsula Daily News will have an electronic edition on… Continue reading

Hill Street reopens after landslide

Hill Street in Port Angeles has been reopened to… Continue reading

Tom Malone of Port Townsend, seeks the warmth of a towel and a shirt as he leaves the 46-degree waters of the Salish Sea on Saturday after he took a cold plunge to celebrate the winter solstice. “You can’t feel the same after doing this as you did before,” Malone said. (Steve Mullensky/for Peninsula Daily News)
Solstice plunge

Tom Malone of Port Townsend, seeks the warmth of a towel and… Continue reading

Tribe, Commerce sign new agreement

Deal to streamline grant process, official says

Jefferson Healthcare to acquire clinic

Partnership likely to increase service capacity

Joe McDonald, from Fort Worth, Texas, purchases a bag of Brussels sprouts from Red Dog Farm on Saturday, the last day of the Port Townsend Farmers Market in Uptown Port Townsend. The market will resume operations on the first Saturday in April 2026. (Steve Mullensky/for Peninsula Daily News)
End of season

Joe McDonald of Fort Worth, Texas, purchases a bag of Brussels sprouts… Continue reading

Clallam requests new court contracts

Sequim, PA to explore six-month agreements

Joshua and Cindy Sylvester’s brood includes five biological sons, two of whom are grown, a teen girl who needed a home, a 9-year-old whom they adopted through the Indian Child Welfare Act, and two younger children who came to them through kinship foster care. The couple asked that the teen girl and three younger children not be fully named. Shown from left to right are Azuriah Sylvester, Zishe Sylvester, Taylor S., “H” Sylvester, Joshua Sylvester (holding family dog Queso), “R,” Cindy Sylvester, Phin Sylvester, and “O.” (Cindy Sylvester)
Olympic Angels staff, volunteers provide help for foster families

Organization supports community through Love Box, Dare to Dream programs