A case of distracted or impaired driving was reported in yesterday’s news and it did not involve drugs or alcohol. One man was killed and another man critically injured early Saturday when the driver of a vehicle hit them on the side of I-15, the Utah Highway Patrol reported. The responsible driver apparently fell asleep at the wheel.
A semitrailer had broken down and was on the shoulder of southbound I-15 near Lehi. A tow truck driver was hooking the semi-truck up to his vehicle about 2:30 a.m. when the sleepy driver veered into them striking the tow truck driver and the driver of the semitrailer.
The responsible driver was in a Honda Civic and miraculously was not injured in the crash. He had drifted off the right side of the freeway between the semitrailer, which was parked in the emergency lane, and lane barriers and struck the two drivers who were standing outside. One man who was directly hit by the vehicle was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the UHP.
The other man was thrown onto a nearby frontage road. He was transported by medical helicopter to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo in "extremely critical condition."
Many times when we think about being responsible drivers we don’t realize that pure exhaustion can effect our driving in much can cause us to completely shut down leading to serious injuries and in this cases death. While this situation is tragic we worry most about the families of the injured and deceased whose lives have dramatically changed. William Rawlings and Associates have represented thousands of families in this situation and have helped them get their life back on track. Though we cannot bring their loved ones back, we can make sure that all medical expenses are taken care of and that their family has income for the rest of their lives to pay for their everyday living needs. We do what we can to get their lives back on track after a senseless event that could have been avoided.
If you find you are driving to the point of exhaustion, pull off to the side of the road, or stop and have someone come get you, but do not continue to drive. It is not worth someone else’s life or your own.