Man flown to hospital with critical injuries after rollover on I-15 south of St. George

MOHAVE COUNTY, Ariz. — A driver was hospitalized Monday evening after he overcorrected and rolled his truck on Interstate 15 just south of the Utah-Arizona border.

Emergency personnel responded to the crash involving a green Toyota Tundra pickup truck hauling a flatbed trailer a short distance south of Exit 27 on southbound I-15 in Arizona at 4:37 p.m.

According to a witness, just before the crash, the truck was in the outside lane and appeared to start weaving back and forth as if the driver was losing control, Arizona Department of Public Safety trooper John Rogers said.

As the truck was weaving, the trailer left the road, hitting the soft shoulder and causing the driver to overcorrect to the right, Rogers said. During the overcorrection, the truck hit a semitractor-trailer in the other lane, and the impact caused the truck to roll. The trailer broke away and went off the road to the right, while the truck came to rest upright in the road.

“Semi driver didn’t stick around. We don’t know who they are,” Rogers said. “I’m not sure if the semi even knows it happened.”

Responding emergency personnel from Beaver Dam/Littlefield Fire and Rescue extricated the man from the truck.

The driver suffered significant injuries, Rogers said, noting that he was wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. He suffered severe trauma to his head and hand but was alert and talking when medical personnel arrived.

Given the critical nature of his injuries, a helicopter crew from Mercy Air responded and flew the man to Dixie Regional Medical Center in St. George.

After the crash, the truck was blocking the roadway, prompting emergency personnel to close both southbound lanes while the helicopter landed and responders tended to the scene.

The lane closures caused traffic to become backed up behind the crash for miles. Traffic was at a standstill for approximately an hour before one lane was opened, allowing the congestion to slowly clear as drivers trickled through the area.

Details of the crash are still under investigation, but Rogers said impairment doesn’t appear to be a factor.

“I believe he just lost control,” Rogers said.

The Toyota sustained heavy damage in the crash and was towed away along with its detached trailer by a wrecker from St. George-based Bracken’s Auto Tech and Tow.

The first responders at the scene came from an array of agencies, including the Arizona Department of Public Safety, Beaver Dam/Littlefield Fire and Rescue, Mercy Air, the Arizona Department of Transportation and the Utah Department of Transportation.

This report is based on preliminary information provided by law enforcement and other emergency responders and may not contain the full scope of findings.

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