Two people were killed in separate accidents in the area.

Thursday, a 40-year-old Lake Tapps woman died after her vehicle left the roadway and struck a tree in the 4400 block of 218th Aveue East.

The driver was Michelle Mast, according to the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office.

East Pierce Fire and Rescue crews responded to the scene.

According to those at the scene, the sport-utility vehicle had been traveling southbound at a high rate of speed prior to crashing head-on into a tree and catching fire.

Several witnesses pulled the driver from the burning vehicle before the firefighters arrived. Other bystanders used an irrigation tank on a trailer to douse the flames.

East Pierce crews began CPR on Mast and transported her to a Tacoma hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Initial reports that there was a second person in the vehicle proved unfounded.

“Several bystanders put themselves at considerable risk to get the woman out,” East Pierce Fire Chief Jerry E. Thorson said. “We commend them for their fast and courageous actions.”

The Pierce County Sherriff’s Office is investigating the cause of the crash.

The sheriff’s department reported that a 46-year-old man was killed during the early morning hours Sunday near Sumner.

The man was identified as Kevin Moore, according to the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office.

The accident happened in the 12900 block of Valley Avenue East.

No details were available from the sherriff’s office.