SALT LAKE CITY — A 46-year-old Riverton man is dead after allegedly driving the wrong-way on I-15 and crashing into a bus transporting Army Reserve cadets early Thursday.
About 6:30 a.m., Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Cameron Roden said a pickup was traveling the north in the southbound lanes of the freeway when it hit a bus near 400 North. The driver of the truck, whose name has not been released, was killed.
The driver of the bus, an active duty service member, was taken to a local hospital. According to the UHP, the woman underwent surgery for her wrist. Twenty-two Army Reserve Officer Training Corps cadets from Utah State University were also on the bus. One cadet received staples for a gash to his head, UHP Cpl. Luis Silver said.
The bus was traveling from the university to Camp Williams for a field-training exercise, according to Lt. Col. Angelique Pifer.
Southbound I-15 was closed at North Temple until about 10:30 a.m. Traffic was diverted at 600 North during the morning commute.
The investigation into where the pickup entered the freeway and how long the driver was traveling the wrong way before the crash happened, remained under investigation Thursday. Silva says emergency dispatchers received at least one call reporting the wrong-way driver prior to the collision.
Gov. Spencer Cox was asked about the fatal collision during his monthly news conference Thursday, and although it’s unclear what led the driver to travel the wrong way, Cox urged drivers to “stop drinking and driving.”
Utah has seen a series of fatal wrong-way collisions in recent years, and “every single fatality we’ve had so far, there has been impairment, either drugs, alcohol or both,” Cox said.
He said the state is investing in expensive technology to track drivers if they enter the roadway going the wrong direction, but said the state absolutely has a role in educating and doing more to prevent such collisions.
Contributing: Pat Reavy
