Vehicle rollover on I-15 closes lanes, Life Flight responds

Stock image; photo does not represent the accident in the attached report | Image by St. George News

UPDATED 6:30 p.m. Utah Department of Public Safety issued it’s media release with some factual differences in this story, which St. George News has confirmed with Trooper Jalaine Hawkes, public information officer for the Utah Highway Patrol.  These include: the destination for the driver transported by Life Flight was Las Vegas; the number of children in the vehicle was five.  Those updates and new information are integrated into this story.

NEW HARMONY – A single-vehicle rollover occurred on Interstate 15 Thursday afternoon, temporarily closing travel lanes.

Trooper Lawrence Hopper, Utah Highway Patrol, said an SUV pulling a trailer rolled over on southbound I-15 near the New Harmony exit at milepost 42. The first reports of the accident to 911 were made around 2:15 p.m. and drew response from the UHP and Cedar City. The DPS media release issued later in the day stated  the vehicle was a Ford Excursion hauling a travel trailer; it was traveling in the outside lane when, for unknown reasons, the trailer began to whip about causing the adult male driver to lose control of the vehicle.

“After leaving the roadway to the right, the vehicle rolled over and the roof caved in over the drivers head causing a serious head injury,” the DPS release stated. “As the vehicle rolled off the highway, the trailer became unattached and also rolled over.”

The occupants of the vehicle were a family of seven, Trooper Jalaine Hawkes said. Along with the driver and his wife in the driver and front passenger seat, respectively, were their five children in the back seats of the Excursion.  All seven were wearing seat belts according to the DPS release.

Hopper said that the adult female and children were readily removed from the rolled SUV, but the adult man was pinned and had to be extricated. Hawkes said the woman and children suffered minor cuts and bruises and were all taken by ambulance to Cedar City Hospital.

The man, in very critical condition, was transported by Life Flight to Las Vegas; Hawkes said no further specifics on the hospital or the man’s condition had been reported to UHP as of 6:30 p.m.

Lanes were temporarily closed to allow clearance for the Life Flight helicopter to land. No other vehicles or property were involved in the accident and the scene was cleared by 3:18 p.m.

St. George News Editor-in-Chief contributed to the update to this report.

SUV rollover near Exit 41 on I-15, New Harmony, Utah, April 4, 2013 | Photo courtesy the Utah Department of Pubic Safety
SUV rollover near Exit 41 on I-15, New Harmony, Utah, April 4, 2013 | Photo courtesy the Utah Department of Pubic Safety

 

SUV rollover near Exit 41 on I-15, New Harmony, Utah, April 4, 2013 | Photo courtesy the Utah Department of Pubic Safety
SUV rollover near Exit 41 on I-15, New Harmony, Utah, April 4, 2013 | Photo courtesy the Utah Department of Pubic Safety

 

SUV rollover near Exit 41 on I-15, New Harmony, Utah, April 4, 2013 | Photo courtesy the Utah Department of Pubic Safety
SUV rollover near Exit 41 on I-15, New Harmony, Utah, April 4, 2013 | Photo courtesy the Utah Department of Pubic Safety

 

 

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Twitter: @MoriKessler

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2013, all rights reserved.

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6 Comments

  • San April 4, 2013 at 10:55 pm

    Prayers for this poor family…how many drivers have we seen driving down I-15 with huge trailers, attached to family vehicles. Maybe it’s time to rethink the size and licensing ratios.

  • Big Don April 5, 2013 at 3:12 pm

    Actually San, that Excursion is plenty big enough and certainly powerful enough to handle the trailer that was attached to it. There are load leveling hitches and anti-sway bars, that are a tremendous help. Now I don’t know if this rig was equipped with those or not. I agree with you about prayers for the family.

    • Relle April 5, 2013 at 9:52 pm

      Big Don I agree with you! I was car behind this vehicle & saw everything. It was very windy and he over corrected when the wind caught the trailer. Could had happened with any truck. My prayers are with this family!

      • Big Don April 6, 2013 at 12:07 pm

        That anti sway bar is something that I don’t see on the majority of bumper pulled trailers. I can’t understand how people will invest thousands of dollars on a trailer, and vehicle to pull it, but won’t spend the relative few bucks it takes to add anti sway. I towed my bumper pull travel trailer all over the country, for many years, in all kinds of weather conditions.
        Aside from when the pavement is slippery, (ice, snow, heavy or fresh rain after a dry spell,) the anti sway bar does it’s job. When it is slippery, all you have to do is back the setting off a bit on the bar.
        And it also helps to know when the weather is so bad, that it is time to get off the road.

  • Heather Peterson May 15, 2013 at 7:41 pm

    San, this Is My Brother & A Big Gust Of Wind (Mother Nature) caused this NOT the size of his trailer! It doesn’t matter what size of trailer you have In fact you don’t even have to be pulling A trailer if that wind hits you just right like it did my brother then the EMT’s will be reviving you like they did my brother. seriously people THINK before you comment!

  • mel May 15, 2013 at 7:49 pm

    Just an FYI. He did have an anti sway bar an the proper hitch. His family is doing well and he is on his way to recovery.

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