WASHINGTON COUNTY — An SUV traveling on Interstate 15 Monday forced a car off the roadway causing the car to roll before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median.
At approximately 8:44 a.m., a Dodge Durango was traveling in the right lane of northbound I-15 while a Subaru Outback was traveling in the left lane, Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Grant Hintze said.
When the driver of the Outback began to pass the Dodge near milepost 19, approximately 3 miles south of Leeds, the driver of the Durango moved into the left lane to pass a semitractor, causing the Outback to go off the left shoulder of the roadway, Hintze said.
The Outback went up a slope in the median and traveled approximately 200 yards, or 600 feet, before rolling and becoming engulfed in flames and igniting a brush fire in the median.
The occupants of the Durango immediately stopped and assisted the male driver and female passenger out of the Outback, Hintze said. The two occupants were able to escape the Outback before it caught fire.
While the vehicle was completely destroyed, Hintze said, the man and woman in the Outback sustained only minor cuts and bruises during the crash because of the help of the other motorists, airbags and seat belt usage.
“The end of the story,” Hintze said, “seat belts and airbags were used correctly and saved lives.”
The St. George Fire Department, Utah Highway Patrol, Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Hurricane Fire and Ambulance, Bureau of Land Management and Utah Department of Transportation responded 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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After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Kimberly Scott, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Kimberly Scott, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Kimberly Scott, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Kimberly Scott, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Kimberly Scott, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Kimberly Scott, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Kimberly Scott, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo courtesy of Kami Felshaw, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Mike Cole, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Mike Cole, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Mike Cole, St. George News After being forced off the roadway by another vehicle, a Subaru Outback rolled before bursting into flames and igniting a brush fire in the median of Interstate 15 near milepost 19, Washington County, Utah, July 18, 2016 | Photo by Mike Cole, St. George News
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Question: Did the driver of the Durango use his LANE CHANGE signal or did he/she cut-off the Subaru? Not an excuse, but more and more people don’t use ’em.
I feel glad no one got hurt….. but I feel sad for the Joshua tree #justsittinghereinthemiddleofnowhereonfire
(ladybugavenger chuckles)
Mmmmmm desert tortoise soup !