Eight people died on Utah roadways Saturday, including at least three teenagers and two young girls.
Killed were:
Eddie E. Muzzio IV, 17, Fairfield, Calif.
Karley D. Muzzio, 19, Fairfield, Calif.
Robert Rees, 17, Ephraim.
Ronald Edward Brown, 65, West Valley City.
Tamara Brown, 55, West Valley City.
Charles Schwab, 72, Portland, Ore.
Also killed were two girls riding in the back of their grandfather's pickup. Their names were not immediately released.
Last Friday and Saturday, a half dozen people died on Utah's roads. Three weeks ago, five people were killed in DUI accidents in Utah.
"It's just nuts," Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Doug McCleve said of the state's recent string of weekend fatalities. "I don't know what the heck's going on. It's the weirdest thing I've seen."
McCleve said the deaths are likely due to the fact that more people are taking vacations and traveling to recreation spots during the abundant dry, hot weather this summer.
Still, the amount of fatalities is disturbing even to a veteran UHP sergeant.
"It's one of the weirdest years I remember," McCleve said.
The two girls died in 12-mile canyon near Mayfield, Sanpete County, after their grandfather, Max Roach of Salt Lake City, lost control of his pickup and left the canyon road, a Sanpete County sheriff's report stated.
The pickup rolled down a rugged area and into a ravine. A third granddaughter, also riding in the back, survived and was taken by medical helicopter to a Salt Lake hospital for treatment. Roach also was taken by medical helicopter to a Salt Lake hospital for treatment, the report stated.
The accident's cause is under investigation.
Ronald Brown, Tamara Brown and Charles Schwab died when a motor home driven by Ronald Brown left U-224, which connects Midway and Guardsman's Pass, McCleve said.
The route is a dirt road at the point where the accident occurred, and it is believed the motor home was traveling too fast, causing it to plunge down a 50-foot embankment. All three were declared dead at the scene.
Geraldine Schwab survived the 4 p.m. accident and was taken to Wasatch County Hospital in Heber City in serious condition, McCleve said.
Eddie and Karley Muzzio died when the SUV Eddie Muzzio was driving swerved off I-80 about 20 miles west of Tooele. The westbound vehicle then overcorrected and rolled. The siblings died at the scene, about 7:50 a.m., according to a UHP report.
Three other members of the Muzzio family sustained lesser injuries and were taken to area hospitals, the report stated.
Rees died when the pickup truck he was riding in went off a gravel road about 10 miles from the mouth of Manti Canyon. Hunters in the area heard screams, discovered the accident and notified the sheriff's department, Sanpete County sheriff's deputy Brett McCall said.
Police have identified Kyle Szakacs, 18, Ephraim, as the driver during the 4:30 a.m. accident, McCall said. Szakacs has been booked into the Sanpete County Jail for investigation of vehicular homicide and DUI. Szakacs and another passenger were treated and released from a local hospital.
Contributing: Suzanne Dean
E-mail: bsnyder@desnews.com