UPDATED: Crash leads to semi rollover on I-15 near Southern Parkway exit, triggering hourslong lane blockage

ST. GEORGE — A semi pulling double trailers rolled on Interstate 15 just north of the Southern Parkway exit Thursday night, causing a closure of both northbound lanes as crews worked for several hours to clear the scene.

A Hyundai passenger car is heavily damaged after it crashed with a semitractor-trailer on northbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 3, St. George, Utah, Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News

That crash, shortly after 9:30 p.m. Thursday night, was followed by another involving three trucks at 1:30 a.m. Friday on north I-15 under the Southern Parkway overpass a little after the earlier crash was cleared.

Both incidents combined kept lanes blocked on northbound I-15 until about 5:30 a.m.

Shortly after 9:30 p.m., a battalion of officers and emergency personnel were dispatched to northbound I-15 near mile marker 3 on a rollover crash involving a silver Hyundai passenger car and a 2018 Freightliner semi.

Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Jeff Adams told St. George News the 40-year-old driver of the semi sustained minor injuries and was transported to St. George Regional Hospital in stable condition, while the two occupants in the Hyundai reported no injuries.

In the aftermath of the crash, the Hyundai was heavily damaged and partially blocked one of the northbound lanes of travel, while the semi rolled in the median, leaving the truck’s cab and its lead trailer on its side.

The lead trailer sustained extensive damage when it twisted during the rollover, Adams said, which tore the skin of the trailer from the rivets and sent a load of dry goods spilling across the median. The second trailer remained relatively intact several feet away in an upright position.

A semitractor-trailer pulling double trailers is overturned after a crash on northbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 3, St. George, Utah, Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News

The crash completely blocked all northbound travel lanes as crews worked to clear the debris and remove the damaged passenger car. Troopers diverted all northbound traffic off the interstate at Exit 2. After nearly an hour, a single lane was reopened to relieve the backup of vehicles.

At the time of the crash, Adams said the Hyundai was headed north in the inside lane adjacent to the median when a Washington County Sheriff’s deputy came up behind the car with his emergency lights activated. The driver of the Hyundai attempted to merge to the right to let the deputy pass by, while at the same time, the semi was heading north in the outside lane of travel.

The Hyundai driver started merging to the right into the the slower-moving lane just as the semi was coming up alongside the passenger car, and for an unknown reason, Adams said, the driver pulled the wheel sharply to the right without looking to make sure the lane was clear. Despite the semi driver’s attempt to avoid a collision, the truck struck the passenger side of the Hyundai, and the impact ripped away the front door and part of the front panel of the car.

Meanwhile, the semi driver attempted to recover the truck following the impact but was unable to regain control as the semi and its double trailers went careening to the left across both lanes of travel before it entered the median and rolled over.

A semitractor’s lead trailer is destroyed after a rollover on northbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 3, St. George, Utah, Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News

Several wreckers were dispatched to the scene to pull the truck and trailer upright, while a crew was also called in to clear the load of dry goods that was left scattered across the median. The Hyundai was also heavily damaged and later towed from the scene.

The man driving the Hyundai was cited for a lane change violation, Adams said.

The trooper cautions motorists to check any blind spots to make sure the lane is clear before pulling to the right to allow emergency vehicles to pass.

The Utah Highway Patrol, Washington County Sheriff’s Office, St. George Police Department, St. George Fire Department, Gold Cross Ambulance and Utah Department of Transportation’s Incident Management Team responded and tended to the scene, which was active until shortly after 1:30 a.m. Friday.

Update 12:30 p.m. – Second crash involves semis

A crash involving two semitractor-trucks and a U-Haul truck blocked lanes of northbound I-15 under the Southern Parkway overpass in the early morning hours, St. George, Utah, Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo courtesy Utah Highway Patrol, St. George News

Just as the earlier crash cleared, another involving three high-profile vehicles occurred just a little further south under the Southern Parkway overpass.

Lt. Shawn Judd with the Utah Highway Patrol said he had few details on the crash other than the vehicles involved.

According to a report filed by officers, a semitractor-trailer crashed into another disabled semi. Shortly after, a U-Haul truck crashed into the two vehicles.

At the scene, the cab of one of the semis was totaled, while a cargo of boxes from another was strewn across the highway.

It reportedly took until 5:30 a.m. to clear up the second crash and allow traffic to move unimpeded on north I-15 once again.

St. George News reporter Chris Reed contributed to this report.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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