| Carbon County Deputies Ron Bogdin and Paul Bedont view the wreck of a Swifts Transportation tractor-trailer rig last Friday morning. The rig reported got caught in the wrong lane and failed to negotiate the curve on the east U.S. Highway 6 interchange coming into Price. The truck left the road rolling once completely. |
A mid-morning accident Oct. 18 blocked traffic on the east U.S. Highway 6 interchange and sent two Washington men to the hospital last Friday.
The mishap occurred when Mohammed Ali, age 25 of Washington, was driving a Swift Transportation tractor trailer rig southbound on U.S. 6 near the city limits of Price at about 10:30 a.m. The truck driver apparently pulled into the lane exiting onto the bypass road into Price by mistake and got caught in the lane before he knew it.
The vehicle was traveling too fast to make the curve, according to accident investigators. The truck left the roadway and took out several warning signs as the semi rolled into the barrow pit in the middle of the interchange.
Ali reportedly incurred a broken leg and a possible arm fracture in the accident.
A passenger riding inside the semi, Paul Mellard, age 30 of Washington, received some neck injuries.
Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Larry Mower indicated that Mellard said he was asleep and heard Ali express an expletive before he felt the truck roll.
The interchange has been the site of many accidents, frequently involving vehicles traveling too fast to negotiate the curve.
The tractor and trailer appeared to be a total loss, while the damage to contents remained to be determined on Friday. The front section of the trailer was ripped out and the boxes inside it were marked “Fragile.”
The truck driver appeared to be wearing safety restraints, concluded Mower.