Truck hits boy, 12, in his own back yard

PAYSON — A 12-year-old boy is recovering after a vehicle drove off the nearby freeway and hit him in his back yard.

Police say the driver of a truck claimed to have had a "coughing fit" and lost consciousness temporarily, which caused him to lose control of his vehicle while traveling south on I-15 near 200 North and 600 West Friday.

The truck crossed through the median, across oncoming traffic, plowed through a fence and through a snowbank where several children were playing, and came to rest after hitting two parked cars, said Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Brett Christensen. The vehicle knocked the boy several yards.

The boy was taken to the hospital in fair condition with no broken bones and admitted overnight for observation.