ST. GEORGE —A series of 911 calls reporting a blown tire, disabled vehicles and two crashes kept Arizona troopers busy Friday, starting with a semi that blocked the southbound side of Interstate 15 when the truck blew a tire. From there it was back-to-back calls that continued in short succession.
Trooper Thomas Callister of the Arizona Department of Public Safety told St. George News the first incident was reported shortly after 4 p.m. involving a semitractor-trailer that blew out a front tire and was stopped in the middle of southbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 14 blocking both lanes of travel.
When troopers arrived they told the driver to move the truck off to the shoulder to relieve the traffic backup. The driver responded by saying it was too risky. Callister said he told the driver that leaving the semi in the middle of the interstate was even riskier, and he ordered the driver to move the semi out of the roadway.
Meanwhile, a driver heading south from St. George in a green Honda Pilot came upon the backup quickly, as he was coming out of a blind curve, Callister said, and then struck the back of another vehicle that was stopped behind the long line of vehicles still waiting for the semi with the blown tire to move out of the roadway.
Callister went on to say the driver said he was going roughly 80 mph as he came out of that blind curve, and after striking the car, the Honda driver lost control of the SUV as it veered off the highway and continued up a rock wall for a few feet before it rolled and landed upside-down.
Gary Holyoak was heading south on I-15 trailing the Honda when he witnessed the crash and pulled over to help. As he approached the SUV he noticed that the driver appeared to be trapped in the overturned vehicle, which is when Holyoak grabbed a large rock and broke out the driver’s side window, he said, and helped the driver climb out of the vehicle.
Callister said what saved the Honda driver’s life was the fact he was wearing his seat belt at the time of the crash, which kept him inside of the SUV and prevented any serious injuries.
As responders were tending to rollover scene, a third incident was reported five miles south on I-15 at mile post 9, an area of ongoing construction during a Friday afternoon with heavy traffic, Callister said, a call that involved a pickup truck driven by an 88-year-old man that struck a 2022 GMC Yukon that was a rental vehicle carrying several tourists.
At the same time as the Yukon call, another call came in reporting a vehicle that was broken down in the middle of the interstate at mile post 12, which is in a blind curve on the bridge going through the Virgin River Gorge, which also presented a particularly dangerous situation for not only the occupants in the broken down car, Callister said, but for other motorists as well. As such, troopers performed a traffic break, which is when officers drive in a zig-zag motion across all lanes of travel to slow down any approaching traffic to reduce the risk of a collision with the disabled car.
While the traffic break was taking place, a worker with the Arizona Department of Transportation was able to hook a tow line to the car and pull it off the interstate to safety.
These incidents created a big headache for southbound motorists, Calister said, and many of the calls they typically see, including the crashes and breakdowns reported on Friday, were preventable. He then went over the main culprits that can create mayhem for anyone traveling through the gorge.
Calls involving blown tires are common he said, and when motorists are confronted with a blown tire they often stop the car immediately, regardless of whether it is in the middle of the interstate, on a blind curve, or if it is blocking traffic, which is one of the most dangerous things a driver can do, he said.
Instead, he said, reduce the speed and continue to drive the vehicle to the nearest exit or wide shoulder were it is safe to pull off to avoid the risk of getting struck by a passing car, or of causing a secondary crash where the disabled car is struck by another vehicle at highway speeds – one of the deadliest types of crashes.
“Even if you are driving on a bare rim, it is still better than being struck by another car at 70 mph,” he said.
Another common cause of crashes involves speeding, so adhering to the speed limit is important and can also provide adequate reaction time should there be an unexpected backup or obstruction in the roadway, such as what took place on Friday, he said.
And most importantly, he said, occupants should be properly restrained – every single time they are traveling in a vehicle, he said, adding there’s nothing worse than arriving at a crash where an occupant has been killed for no other reason than being unbuckled at the time of the incident.
“It comes down to motorists using common sense,” Callister said. “Which is becoming more uncommon to find these days.”
The Arizona Department of Public Safety, Beaver Dam-Littlefield Fire and Rescue and the Arizona Department of Transportation and the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office responded and tended to the scenes.
This report is based on statements from police, emergency personnel or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings.
Photo gallery
Bystanders stop to help driver of Honda Pilot following rollover crash on southbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 14 in the Virgin River Gorge, Mohave County, Ariz., Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo courtesy of Zach Holyoak, St. George News v Honda Pilot is heavily damaged during rollover on southbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 14 in the Virgin River Gorge, Mohave County, Ariz., Feb. 4, 2022 | in crash on southbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 9 in the Virgin River Gorge, Ariz., Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo courtesy of Zach Holyoak, St. George News Arizona Department of Public Safety patrol vehicle at scene of rollover on southbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 14 in the Virgin River Gorge, Ariz., Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo courtesy of Zach Holyoak, St. George News Pickup truck is heavily damaged in crash on southbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 9 in the Virgin River Gorge, Ariz., Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo courtesy of Beaver Dam-Littlefield Fire and Rescue, St. George News GMC Yukon is heavily damaged in crash on southbound Interstate 15 near mile marker 9 in the Virgin River Gorge, Ariz., Feb. 4, 2022 | Photo courtesy of Beaver Dam-Littlefield Fire and Rescue, St. George News 
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