SOUTHERN UTAH – Interstate 15 saw three separate single vehicle accidents between 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. tonight. Water on the highway was the common factor.
Mile marker 16 southbound – A vehicle heading southbound on I-15 hydroplaned at mile marker 16 and hit the guard rail. Cpl. Todd Johnson with the Utah Highway Patrol said the call for UHP dispatch came in at 7 p.m.
Mile marker 16 southbound – Shortly after, but not related to the first accident, a FedEx semitrailer jackknifed at mile marker 16 and took out three delineator poles – the 4-foot high poles that have reflectors on them, planted every couple hundred feet along the edge of the highway. The driver was able to straighten the semi by the time the UHP trooper arrived, pulling off the Interstate offramp into a parking lot where an accident report was made.
Mile marker 18 northbound – At 8:30 p.m.a Honda Civic traveling northbound hydroplaned and hit the guardrail at mile marker 18.
There were no injuries reported in any of the three accidents and all vehicles were operable after crashing.
The bottom line, when it is wet, Johnson said, is to reduce your speed.
“When you have a good downpour,” he said, “you can end up riding on top of that water.”
Resources
For road conditions from the Utah Department of Transportation:
Visit UDOT’s Road Weather Alerts.
Obtain UDOT’s smartphone travel app.
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Thank God everyone was okay…scary weather!
Define Precipitate: Cause an event or situation to happen suddenly, unexpectedly, or prematurely.
So did the rain cause the unexpected accidents or did poor driving in rain cause the expected accidents?