Police: Driver rear-ends SUV parked in the roadway on Red Hills Parkway, sparking engine fire

Scene of a crash on Red Hills Parkway just past Skyline Pond, St. George, Utah, Dec. 2, 2021 | Photo by Joseph Witham, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — A fiery vehicle collision on westbound Red Hills Parkway just past Skyline Pond partially closed off traffic on the thoroughfare late Thursday night but resulted in no injuries.

Scene of a crash on Red Hills Parkway just past Skyline Pond, St. George, Utah, Dec. 2, 2021 | Photo by Joseph Witham, St. George News

The crash, in front of 695 Red Hills Parkway, occurred a little after 10 p.m. and resulted in the closure of the westbound side of the parkway from 900 East, where traffic was diverted, St. George Police said.

Witnesses on the scene and St. George Police confirmed a Jeep with a male driver as the sole passenger was stopped in the inside lane with a flat tire. A sports utility vehicle with a male driving and female passenger stopped in front of the Jeep and turned its hazards on.

A silver sedan with a male driver then came from behind, and witnesses said it slammed into the SUV at between 20 and 30 mph.

“The driver that hit them said he was distracted and so he didn’t have time to stop,” Officer Tiffany Mitchell with the St. George Police Department told St. George News.

Scene of a crash on Red Hills Parkway just past Skyline Pond, St. George, Utah, Dec. 2, 2021 | Photo by Joseph Witham, St. George News

The crash damaged the sedan and the back of the SUV, and the sedan’s engine burst into 3-foot flames. That prompted a response from the St. George Fire Department, which put the fire out.

Medical personnel also arrived at the scene as a precaution, but Mitchell said there were no injuries.

There will still likely be a cost to the drivers of the three vehicles. Mitchell said the driver of the sedan was cited by police for careless driving. The drivers of the other two vehicles were cited for parking in the roadway.

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

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

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