FARMINGTON — Two people were killed and another was taken to the hospital by helicopter in extremely critical condition when a car traveling the wrong way on Legacy Parkway around 11:30 a.m. Saturday hit another vehicle head-on, troopers said.
The crash occurred in the area of 1470 South in Farmington, the Utah Highway Patrol said. Southbound traffic on Legacy Parkway was closed and traffic diverted to I-15 for about five hours.
“We’re not sure what the circumstances are behind the driver going the wrong way. We’re not sure if it’s impairment, we’re not sure if it’s a medical issue or distraction,” Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Lawrence Hopper said as the investigation was getting underway.
Later, the agency said in a news release that the preliminary investigation determined the car heading northbound in a southbound lane may have entered from Parrish Lane via the off-ramp.
The driver and one of two passengers in the car headed in the wrong direction were taken to the hospital. A male passenger in the back seat of that vehicle sustained fatal injuries and died on the scene, as did a female passenger in the car that was hit head-on, Hopper said.
The driver of the car that was hit had to be extricated from the vehicle before being transported to the hospital by helicopter in extremely critical condition.
The names of the victims were not immediately released.
Contributing: Lisa Riley Roche