St, George, UT (May 21, 2022) – A T-bone collision involving two vehicles resulted in two injured drivers and one temporarily missing canine on Wednesday, May 18th.
According to an officer with the St. George Police Department, the crash took place at about 2:20 p.m. at the intersection of 2780 East and Mall Drive in St. George.
Upon their arrival, police, paramedics, and fire crews located a heavily damaged 2022 Ford Maverick pick-up truck and the crushed remnants of a street-legal 2017 Polaris RZR side-by-side.
An investigation determined that a 76-year-old woman driving the pick-up had tried to make a lefthand turn across the westbound lanes of traffic. In doing so, she was struck on the passenger side by a 61-year-old man driving the Polaris utility terrain vehicle.
The man sustained serious head trauma and possibly a broken leg. The woman reported having neck pains. Both patients were taken by Gold Cross Ambulances to local medical facilities for treatment.
The driver of the UTV had a dog in his vehicle at the time of the collision but, after the incident, he was unable to locate it.
Fortunately, investigators learned that a group of bystanders witnessed the crash and had rushed to the aid of both the man and his dog, a female mixed breed with a brindle coat named Sandy.
After the accident, the bystanders first checked on the man in the UTV and found him unconscious with one leg sticking through the plastic floor of the vehicle. As he began to regain consciousness, another witness who was eager to assist noticed a scared, furry passenger in the wreckage. One of the witnesses was able to safely extricate the pup and was kind enough to take him to a local veterinarian for checks.
Meanwhile, fire crews responded to the scene where they used the Jaws of Life to pry open the door to the UTV and free the driver. Neither he nor the police had been informed of the dog’s whereabouts, leading to a bit of temporary confusion. The proper vet was located and they confirmed that Sandy was in a stable condition but they were going to keep her overnight for monitoring.
The female driver was issued a citation for failing to yield on a left turn.
The two totaled vehicles obstructed traffic along that portion of Mall Drive, leaving only one lane open until responders cleared the scene shortly after 3:00 p.m.
Failure to yield the right of way is one of the main causes of vehicle collisions in the United States. A private company that analyzes crash data supplied by insurance companies reported that failing to yield is the number four cause of fatal car crashes, behind driving under the influence, failing to maintain the proper lane, and speeding.
When a driver fails to yield, it can result in many types of serious accidents, such as head-on collisions and side-impact accidents. Failure to yield at a crosswalk can also put pedestrians and cyclists, who are extremely vulnerable due to their lack of external protections, in a very dangerous situation.
After being hurt in an accident that wasn’t your fault, contact our Utah personal injury attorneys at (801) 350-3506 to schedule a free case assessment and learn how we can help you.
Notes: The details and information utilized to create this post were gathered through the use of secondary sources. The details surrounding this accident have not been independently verified by the writing staff at Jardine Law Offices P.C.. These sources include but are not limited to newspaper stories, local news sources, local and state police reports, and eyewitness accounts about serious accidents that take place in Farmington and Salt Lake City, Utah. If you locate any information that is inaccurate, please contact us right away so that we can update the post with the most accurate information available. If you would like the post to be removed, please let us know and we will remove it as soon as possible.
Disclaimers: The attorneys at Jardine Law Offices P.C. have worked hard through the years to build a solid business reputation in the community. We write about these serious incidents to bring awareness about the dangers associated with driving in hopes that our fellow community members will use an abundance of caution when operating a motor vehicle and avoid being involved in a serious accident themselves. This story is not intended to be a solicitation for business. The information provided in this post should not be misconstrued as medical or legal advice. The photos used in this post are not taken from the scene of this accident.