Chemeketa welding instructor dies in Friday afternoon crash on Lancaster Drive
This story was updated with additional information from Chemeketa Community College.
A Salem man and college welding instructor died in a single car crash on Southeast Lancaster Drive Friday afternoon, according to the Salem Police Department.
Terry Calderwood, 55, was driving his work truck north on Lancaster Drive around 2:45 p.m. Friday, June 6 when his truck left the roadway and crashed into a culvert, a police said in a Saturday statement.
The statement did not say what caused Calderwood’s truck to drive off the road. His truck crashed near the 2400 block of Southeast Lancaster Drive, which is a few blocks south of a Home Depot, police said.
Calderwood was a part-time welding instructor at Chemeketa Community College, a college spokeswoman confirmed.
After crashing into the culvert, the truck continued until it hit a fence, according to the statement. His phone detected the crash and called 911.
Firefighters arrived on scene and provided aid to Calderwood before he was transported to Salem Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
The Salem Police Traffic Team is investigating the crash.
Calderwood was the second person to die in a crash on Southeast Lancaster Drive last week. A Salem motorcyclist, Jesse Wadley, died in a crash Thursday night at the intersection of Southeast Lancaster and Glenwood Drives, a statement from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office said.
Police said this was the fourth fatal crash the department has responded to this year, resulting in four deaths.
According to Salem Reporter’s coverage, there have been six fatal crashes in the Salem area in 2025, killing six people.
Contact reporter Madeleine Moore: [email protected].
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Madeleine Moore joined Salem Reporter in 2024 and reports on a variety of topics including public safety, addiction, treatment and the criminal justice system. She came to Salem after graduating from the University of Oregon in June 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.
