OGDEN — Robbie Petersen, one of two survivors of the van rollover that killed eight of his classmates and his instructor, doesn't remember whether he buckled up or anything else about the accident.
The last thing the 21-year-old Utah State University student said he could remember was looking out the window of the 15-passenger van at a shed where he and his classmates studying farm machinery had just seen a type of combine.
The students were returning from a field trip with USU's College of Agriculture when a tire blew on the van that sent it out of control on eastbound I-84, rolling four times and ejecting all 11 occupants.
Only Petersen and Jared Nelson, 22, survived. Nelson remains in critical but stable condition at Ogden Regional Medical Center. He is no longer in a coma but is under the influence of doctor-prescribed sedatives to keep him asleep and let his body heal, his father, Brent Nelson, said.
At a Friday news conference at McKay-Dee Hospital, an emotional Petersen remembered his friends who didn't survive.
"My heart is weighed very heavy with the loss of those in this terrible incident," Petersen said. "All of the men involved were some of the finest men I've ever met. I have nothing but the greatest love and respect for all those involved, and I hope the families can move on with their lives."
Petersen, who escaped with two broken femurs, broken ribs and a broken foot and nose, doesn't remember if he buckled up or not. "By habit, I do wear a seat belt," he said.
He bears marks that look like a seat belt rash, his father, Carl Petersen, had told the Deseret Morning News earlier and confirmed again Friday. But investigators for the Utah Highway Patrol maintain the condition of the belts in the van indicates that no one in the van was wearing a seat belt.
The fatal field trip was the first of the year for the group of mostly freshmen USU students. The group studied agriculture machinery technology and was on a field trip to learn about the workings of different machines.
Although school had convened just 2 1/2 weeks before, the group quickly became fast friends. Two of Petersen's high school friends — Dusty Dean Fuhriman and Justin Huggins — were in the class.
Petersen said he remembers that he drove from work to a tractor dealership in Tremonton, where he met up with the class to begin the trip. There was a lighthearted attitude in the van because they were glad to be out of the classroom, Petersen said.
"We were all pretty excited to be there to see how machines operate," he said.
Once he woke up at the hospital, his father broke the news about the crash.
He doesn't know why he survived, but he said he knows he is blessed. "It also made me feel like I have a duty to do," Petersen said.
He said he wants to represent the best of agriculture for those who died.
Sitting in a wheelchair with a USU blanket over his legs, Petersen said he has regular physical therapy. Doctors haven't told him when he will be able to go home, but he could be walking by Christmas, he said.
He thanked paramedics, law enforcement officers, doctors and nurses who have helped in his recovery.
He plans to start his freshman year over in fall 2006.
Carl Petersen said he and his wife, Lorna, feel lucky their son, the second of four children, is alive.
"I feel like there's got to be some reason why he was spared," Carl
Petersen said. "Every day I come to see him it's a miracle."
An investigator from the National Transportation Safety Board is expected to arrive in Utah Thursday to try to determine the cause of the crash, Utah Highway Patrol Lt. Doug McCleve said.
USU has grounded its fleet of 15-passenger vans, which have a history of rollovers. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a warning in May about the dangers of the big vans, the third such warning in four years.
Jeff Wigington, an attorney from Corpus Christi, Texas, said the warnings are not enough. He said the "inherent design of the vehicle is fatally flawed."
Wigington has several cases pending against van manufacturers. He said vans like the 1994 Dodge involved in the Utah crash put a disproportionate amount of weight on the left rear tire, which ultimately causes the tire to fail like it did in the USU rollover.
USU officials will make a decision on the future of the 50-van fleet by the end of the month, USU spokesman Jon DeVilbiss said.
Officials are looking at possibly replacing the vans with other vehicles like Chevrolet Suburbans, which are more expensive than the vans. Or they may retrofit the vans with more safety features like dual rear tires.
One company can do the retrofit for $2,000 per vehicle, DeVilbiss said.
In 2001, after a weather-related crash injured six members of the university's men's club volleyball team in Wyoming, the university created a policy about van usage.
That policy warned of the dangers of 15-passenger vans. "Vans represent one of the greatest driving risks to the university," the policy says. The policy also requires all potential drivers to pass a certification course before they can drive a van, DeVilbiss said.
Parker never completed the training course, DeVilbiss said. However, he did possess a valid commercial driver's license.
In the wake of the Sept. 26 crash, he said, it's time for the university to look at van usage again.
"I know many people are aware of the danger of these vans but choose to think this would never happen to them," said Susan Roselund, an Oregon woman whose teenage daughter was critically injured in a 15-passenger van rollover in August 2003. "As we know from this accident, even with safety rules in place, the accidents keep on happening and innocent people continue to die."