HURRICANE — A two-car collision in Hurricane Friday evening sent one man to the hospital while all others involved in the crash walked away uninjured – including 3 children.
At approximately 6:45 p.m. officers were dispatched to a two-car collision in the intersection of state Route 9 and Telegraph Street, Hurricane City Police Officer Jeff Adams said.
As officers and emergency personnel arrived they found a turquoise 2005 Saturn 4-door sedan, Adams said, smashed into the rear bumper of a 2003 Chevy Express van.
As officers approached the Saturn they found the driver, a 33-year-old male, injured in the driver’s seat of the vehicle, he said.
“The man apparently struck the windshield during impact,” Adams said, “and was bleeding from a head wound when we found him.”
Officers also found three children, a 10-year-old male and two females, ages 8 and 4, Adams said, sitting in the back seat. All three were shaken but uninjured.
“Thankfully the children were properly restrained in the back seat,” Adams said, “or the accident could have been much worse.”
The man driving the Saturn was subsequently transported to Dixie Regional Medical Center in stable condition, the officer said, to be treated for his injuries.
During the preliminary investigation officers determined that the Saturn was travelling eastbound on SR-9, and approaching the intersection with Telegraph Street. The driver of the van — also eastbound — was stopped at a red light. The driver of the Saturn did not slow as he arrived at the intersection, and had to slam on his brakes, sending his vehicle into an uncontrolled skid. The Saturn continued skidding until it crashed into the rear of the van that was still stopped at the traffic light.
At the point of impact the Saturn driver was thrown forward and his head cracked the windshield, resulting in a head wound that required medical treatment. According to police the man wasn’t wearing a seat belt.
The driver of the van was wearing his seat belt and reported he was uninjured.
The crash caused extensive front end damage to the Saturn, while the van sustained damage to the rear bumper.
Both eastbound traffic lanes were impacted for approximately 45 minutes, Adams said, and were completely blocked immediately after the crash.
Officers then diverted both eastbound lanes into the left turn lane at the intersection, allowing cars to go through until the vehicles were towed and debris was cleared.
Hurricane City Police Department, Washington City Police Department, and Hurricane Valley Fire District and EMS responded and tended to the scene.
This report is based on preliminary information provided by law enforcement or other emergency responders and may not contain the full scope of findings.
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Hurricane Valley Fire District and EMS, Hurricane Police and Washington City Police Department respond to two-car collision in Hurricane, Utah, July 15, 2016 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News Hurricane Valley Fire District responds to two-car collision in Hurricane, Utah, July 15, 2016 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
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I couldn’t help but remember when my kids were little, how they tested me by taking off their seat belts… “click, snap, click, snap”. How often I would take mine off so I could turn around at stop lights and give them the instructions over and over to put their seat belts on… and how many times, I would get to my destination, reach over to take off my seat belt and realize I didn’t snap it back on at the last stop light lecture…. using rear view mirror never worked BC I was too short in my seat.