ST. GEORGE — Rush hour traffic on northbound Interstate 15 slowed to a crawl for about a half hour Thursday evening after a single-car accident near mile marker 9.
St. George Fire Chief Robert Stoker told St. George News that one vehicle, which appeared in photographs to be a maroon GMC Envoy SUV, struck the center divider separating northbound and southbound lanes and spun around.
Stoker said he did not know how or why the Envoy struck the wall.
By the time fire department, police department and ambulance personnel arrived, Stoker said, the two occupants of the vehicle had already gotten out of it.
Prior to that, however, Stoker said the engine compartment of the Envoy burst into flames and bystanders and samaritans helped the two occupants exit the Envoy and then fought the fire with extinguishers.
Fire department personnel helped douse the fire completely after arrival, said Stoker, adding that the occupants of the Envoy did not require ambulance transport.
Northbound traffic was slowed again by another incident farther up I-15 at mile marker 12, but that also was a “non injury,” Stoker said.
“Our main concern, with it being rush hour, was restoring the normal flow of traffic,” Stoker said. “Once everybody slowed down we were able to open up the lanes.”
Northbound traffic on I-15 was backed up all the way to the Bluff Street exit before cars started to move again normally a little before 6 p.m.
This report is based on statements from emergency responders and may not include the full scope of the findings in the investigation.
Photo Gallery
A GMC Envoy after smashing into the divider wall on I-15 near mile marker 9, St. George, Utah, July 28, 2022 | Photo by Vin Cappiello, St. George News
A GMC Envoy after smashing into the divider wall on I-15 near mile marker 9, St. George, Utah, July 28, 2022 | Photo by Vin Cappiello, St. George News
A GMC Envoy after smashing into the divider wall on I-15 near mile marker 9, St. George, Utah, July 28, 2022 | Photo by Vin Capiello, St. George News
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.