ST. GEORGE — It may have been what authorities called a “minor” crash, but it was another reminder of what has been a hectic stretch of road lately between Littlefield and the start of the Virgin River Gorge on north Interstate 15 in Arizona on the way to St. George.
While Sgt. Preston Price, of the Arizona Department of Public Safety, said this particular crash Monday morning involving a sedan losing control and crashing sideways into a semitractor-trailer didn’t involve driver error, it nevertheless was just another day in what Price said has been a struggle for law enforcement in the area that includes a construction zone with reduced speeds that many aren’t adhering to.
“It’s been a nightmare,” Price said. “People get so frustrated and impatient. Just be patient.”
Since the project began in September to rebuild Virgin River Bridge No. 1, crashes have become a common occurrence in the construction area – especially on weekends – whether it has been vehicles crashing into the backs of trucks or colliding into the backs of other vehicles slowing down.
An app is available for Android and Apple devices for people to remain up to date with the construction and other traffic delays in the area, which have been nearly continuous and will likely continue until the end of the project that is not expected until next year.
The southbound side of the construction zone comes in an area where motorists traditionally speed back up after coming through the slower speeds of the curvy gorge but is instead now a 45 mph zone. The northbound side also slows to 45 and has an abrupt closure to the right lane after a 75 mph speed limit.
In this case, the crash happened around 8:30 a.m., just past the reduced speed area right at the entrance to the Virgin River Gorge at mile marker 13. Price said a Toyota Avalon with a male driver as the sole passenger may have lost the front passenger-side tire and went sideways into the semi.
“I didn’t see anything faulty on his part,” Price said of the driver of the Avalon. “The tire was completely down to the rim. They started swerving and went into the side of the truck.”
The crash left a cracked windshield and most of the damage to the passenger side, with the driver only having a few bruises that didn’t require medical assistance, Price said. There was little to no damage to the truck. But the officer added it could have been much worse if someone had been driving as a passenger.
“If there was a passenger, it would have been pretty serious.”
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