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2 seriously injured in three-vehicle crash on SR-18 near Veyo – St George News

Anna Harden July 4, 2024 in dday - 10 Minutes

VEYO- A three-vehicle crash on State Route 18, about a half-mile south of the Veyo Pools Resort turnoff, left two people seriously injured, including the driver of a Rocky Mountain Power vehicle, who was flown to the hospital by helicopter.

The injured driver of a Rocky Mountain Power vehicle is loaded aboard an Intermountain Life Flight helicopter, Dammeron Valley, Utah, July 3, 2024 | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

The crash occurred at approximately 12:20 p.m. Wednesday at mile marker 19 of SR-18. It involved a dark blue Mercedes-Benz 3500 van, a white Rocky Mountain Power Ford F-350 pickup truck and a work truck with a trailer. Each vehicle had a male driver as the sole occupant.

Officers are unsure of the exact cause of the accident and continued their investigation throughout the afternoon.

The drivers of the pickup truck and work vehicle had to be extricated. The driver of the pickup truck was in such poor condition that an Intermountain Life Flight helicopter landed on Veyo Resort Road and flew the driver to St. George Regional Hospital.

At the same time, the driver of the emergency vehicle was taken to hospital by Gold Cross Ambulance.

“These patients are red flagged for us, which is a very high medical priority,” said Ryan D'Ambrosio, battalion chief of the Dammeron Valley Fire Department, at the scene. “These are critical injuries.”

D'Ambrosio added that the driver of the van was examined by emergency responders on scene but refused medical treatment or transport to the hospital.

At the scene of the accident, the truck was lying on the side of the road with its trailer lying in the air on its rear. The truck's cab was crushed, with the driver's door about 20 meters from the rest of the vehicle, which was surrounded by debris in the dry grass.

The pickup remained on the north side of the road, but facing the wrong way, as if it had skidded with its airbags deployed. The front and both sides of the truck were damaged, with the worst damage occurring on the rear passenger side – the metal of the vehicle appeared to be peeling off and flapping in the wind like paper.

A wrecked truck with a trailer resting on top is seen after a three-vehicle crash on State Route 18, Dammeron Valley, Utah, July 3, 2024 | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

The van suffered the most damage to the rear of the driver's side. Although it was drivable, it was taken away by a tow truck like the other two vehicles.

SR-18 was limited to one lane of alternating traffic in the area throughout the afternoon while the Utah Highway Patrol and Washington County Sheriff reconstructed the crash. Officers and firefighters from the Dammeron Valley, Brookside and Veyo fire departments assisted with traffic and cleanup efforts.

The UHP is leading the investigation into the accident and is monitoring the accident scene using a drone.

A Rocky Mountain Power pickup truck after a three-vehicle crash on State Route 18, Dammeron Valley, Utah, July 3, 2024 | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

“We’re still trying to get to the bottom of this,” said Trooper Tim Leak.

However, police believe that it started with the van carefully slowing down and that a chain reaction then occurred.

“I just think people didn't slow down in time,” Leak said. “Someone was mowing grass or pulling weeds on the side of the road or something. That's why the van slowed down and the people behind them couldn't slow down.”

This report is based on preliminary information from law enforcement authorities and may not contain the full scope of findings.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2024, all rights reserved.

Chris Reed works as a reporter for the St. George News, where he has received several Society of Professional Journalists awards for his work, including first place finishes. He began his journalism career as a sports reporter and editor in Southern California, where he once compared shoe sizes with Shaquille O'Neal and exchanged mixtapes with members of the Los Angeles Kings. After growing up in the San Fernando Valley, where he learned karate skills from Mr. Miyagi, and spending a decade in Las Vegas, mostly avoiding the casinos, he came to St. George for love and married his soul mate, who has spent his entire life in Southern Utah. He is the proud father of two boys, his youngest of whom is a battle with autism and type 1 diabetes.

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