ST. GEORGE — On Red Cliffs Drive late Wednesday morning, a Harley-Davidson motorcycle collided with a subcompact car, which caused the chopper and its passenger to be dragged across the road. The driver of the car was arrested on Wednesday afternoon for driving under the influence after failing a blood and urine test. 

The male rider of the Harley was transported from the scene to St. George Regional Hospital by Gold Cross Ambulance. He was reportedly breathing but suffered severe head trauma and pelvic injuries and was unresponsive just before he was transported.

The victim has since regained consciousness but is “not out of the woods” according to St. George Police Sgt. Tyrell Bangerter. The driver of the red Honda Fit that hit the motorcycle, 66-year-old Susan McKinney, is being held at Purgatory Detention Center in Hurricane.

“The driver of the car was arrested for negligently operating a vehicle resulting in serious injury, which is for the DUI, and failure to yield,” Bangerter told St. George News Wednesday afternoon.

The crash – at the corner of Red Cliffs and 2450 East around 10:30 a.m. – forced the closure of the busy road between Red Cliffs Mall and the Washington City border for nearly three hours as police conducted an investigation. Drivers were forced to either use the nearby residential neighborhood or stay on Interstate 15 to get around the scene.

“This is going to be a full accident reconstruction. Drones are going to be here, so the roads are going to be shut down here for a little bit,” St. George Police Sgt. Colby DeCamp told St. George News at the scene as Red Cliffs Drive between 2000 and 2450 East remained closed. “People are not going to be able to get through this intersection for at least an hour, maybe two.”

Eastbound traffic on Red Cliffs Drive was opened at 12:10 p.m., but the westbound side and the turn to 2450 East remained closed until 1:20 p.m.

The red Honda Fit that crashed into the motorcycle had its passenger-side door crushed with its side airbag deployed after the crash, while the Harley was mangled and partially under the rear of the vehicle.

The female driver and only passenger of the Honda was examined at the scene by Gold Cross emergency responders and then released.

A curved path of broken glass and debris scattered from the center of the intersection to the car parked at a curb of North 2450 East. The motorcycle was still partially under the back of the vehicle. 

Along with St. George Police and ambulance, officers from Washington City, Utah Tech University and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, as well as St. George firefighters, responded to the scene.

Police were still trying to determine the exact cause of the crash, but said at the time the motorcycle was traveling east on Red Cliffs Drive, while the Honda was in the process of making a left turn from Red Cliffs Drive to 2450 East.

“We’ve got witnesses that were saying  …  the red car was attempting to turn from Red Cliffs southbound onto 2450 East and pulled in front of the motorcycle,” DeCamp said. “It’s unknown right now if the driver even saw the motorcycle.”

DeCamp said it was also unknown if the motorcyclist was wearing a helmet. Among the scattered debris, no helmet was seen.

But DeCamp did say he’s seen plenty of similar crashes and most are avoidable. 

“What I would recommend is please pay attention. We’ve got so many motorcycles out right now,” DeCamp said. “It’s a beautiful time of the year, especially for people to be on motorcycles, and as a driver of any vehicle or motorcycle, it’s all of our responsibilities to ensure the safety of each other. This is the type of accident that is avoidable if we all do our part to keep each other safe.”

This report is based on preliminary statements from fire or law enforcement officials and may not contain the full scope of findings.

Update July 19, 1:30 p.m. Red Cliffs Drive fully reopened.

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