Police: Unexpected lane change leads to 2 car collision in St. George, 1 woman transported to hospital

After another vehicle cut off the gray Pontiac Vibe in the background, this white Nissan Sentra struck the back of the Vibe while traveling on I-15, St. George, Utah, Aug. 23, 2021 | Photo courtesy of the Utah Highway Patrol, St. George News

ST. GEORGEA 69-year-old woman was driving north on Interstate 15 between St. George Boulevard and Green Springs Drive when she was allegedly cut off by a white Ford pickup truck, causing her to swerve and crash into the concrete barrier on the right side of the highway.

Skid marks show the path of both vehicles following their collision, St. George, Utah, Aug. 23, 2021 | Photo courtesy of the Utah Highway Patrol, St. George News

After bouncing off the wall and coming to a rest in the far right lane, the woman’s gray 2007 Pontiac Vibe was struck from behind by a white 2018 Nissan Sentra driven by a 17-year-old boy, said Trooper Chris Lewis with the Utah Highway Patrol.

“The driver of the Vibe stated to me that she was northbound in the middle lane when she had this white pickup cut her off,” Lewis said. “She overcorrected and swerved to avoid it. In doing so, she went across all three lanes of traffic. The Nissan was northbound in the right lane, so after she hit the barrier, he hit the rear passenger compartment of her vehicle.”

The whole chain of events occurred shortly before the authorities were called to the scene around 3:15 p.m. on Monday.

When first responders arrived, the drivers of the two vehicles were evaluated for their injuries, and the woman was transported by Gold Cross Ambulance to St. George Regional Hospital.

The front of the Pontiac Vibe driven by a 69-year-old woman involved in Monday’s crash, St. George, Utah, Aug. 23, 2021 | Photo courtesy of the Utah Highway Patrol, St. George News

Lewis, who arrived on the scene and later met with the woman at the hospital, said she was stable at the scene but was transported to make certain she was alright.

“She was fine,” Lewis said. “She was able to tell me what happened. It was more precautionary based on her age and the damage that was done to the vehicle.”

Airbags deployed in each vehicle, and both drivers were wearing their seat belts at the time of the crash. There were no other passengers in either vehicle.

UHP Sgt. Larry Mower said both the Vibe and the Sentra were undrivable following the collision and blocked northbound traffic for a time. 

Mower helped direct traffic around the accident on the right hand shoulder of I-15 until workers with the Utah Department of Transportation arrived to move the vehicles into the far left lane. At that point the two right lanes were open for traffic.

First responders worked to clear the scene so that traffic could resume as usual by around 4:05 p.m., St. George, Utah, Aug. 23, 2021 | Photo courtesy of the Utah Highway Patrol, St. George News

The vehicles were towed from the scene, and traffic resumed through all three lanes around 4:05 p.m., Mower said. While that particular stretch of highway isn’t particularly accident-prone, he said incidents like this happen regularly even though they can be avoided.

“Before you make lane changes, check your mirrors, check your blind spots, make sure that it’s clear to go and then maintain a safe following distance,” Mower said. “One of the biggest problems we have is people get going too close together, and then when there is a hazard they don’t have time to react.”

No citation has been issued as the driver of the white pickup truck was not identified, Lewis said. The highway patrol, UDOT and paramedics were assisted at the scene by firefighters with the St. George Fire Department.

This report is based on information provided by law enforcement and may not contain the full scope of findings.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.

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