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Truck Crash On Utah Highway Involves 35,500 Pounds Of Explosives

September 1, 2005

A truck transporting 35,500 pounds of explosives was involved in an accident and exploded Wednesday, damaging a Utah highway and injuring at least four people.

The driver was conscious and able to escape as well as alert other motorists to stay away before the truck exploded. Hospital visits were required from the passenger in the truck cab and other motorists with injuries, said Utah Highway Patrol.

Two of the people were listed in critical condition and another was in fair condition at a hospital in Provo.

The driver of the truck, a 30-year-old man, was taken to University of Utah Hospital where he was alert and physically unharmed, said a spokesman.

The cause of the accident has still not been determined. The remnants of the truck are scarce because the truck was 'pretty much vaporized' in the explosion and the lanes going both ways of Highway 6 in Spanish Fork Canyon, about 60 miles south of Salt Lake City, were destroyed by the blast.

One motorist, J.D. Herbert, a nephew of Utah Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert, was riding on this motorcycle when he said the explosion blew him off of his vehicle. Soon after he saw a mushroom cloud of fire and reported that shrapnel began falling down.

The flying debris is also believed to have started several small fires in the hills above the accident scene. There is also damage reported at the nearby rail lines.

The rig with a 6-foot trailer from R&R Trucking of Missouri was headed for Oklahoma. The accident occurred just as it was leaving commercial explosives maker Ensign-Bickford at the mouth of Spanish Fork Canyon.

Officials wouldn't say what type of explosives the truck was carrying.

WELD COUNTY Pickup Truck CRASH KILLS ONE, INJURES TWO

An accident involving two pickup trucks is responsible for the death of one man and a child being airlifted to Children's Hospital.

According to police, a little before eight o'clock, one of the pickups ran a stop sign at the intersection of Weld County Roads 6 and 13. The accident scene is about seven miles northwest of Brighton.

The driver of the pickup who went through the stop sign died at the site of the crash.

The second pickup was driven by a young male. He was taken by ambulance to St. Anthony's Hospital in Denver.

In the second pickup, both the driver and his younger passenger sustained serious injuries, said a police spokesperson. The identities of the people involved have not been released yet.