This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A would-be good Samaritan was struck and seriously injured Wednesday morning while trying to assist a motorist who had just slid off slippery Interstate 80 in Parleys Canyon.
Utah Highway Patrol Cpl. Todd Johnson said the accident occurred at 7:57 a.m. near mile post 134 of eastbound I-80, near the Mountain Dell exit.
Snow was falling heavily at the time and the victim — a 21-year-old man — had stopped his own car after seeing the first motorist lose control of his Toyota 4Runner SUV on the icy roadway and slide into the median concrete barrier wall. As the victim was checking on that driver, a Toyota Tacoma pickup truck approached, also slid out of control and struck both the victim and the 4Runner.
Johnson said the victim was thrown 40-50 feet by the impact.
He was taken in critical condition by ambulance to a Salt Lake City hospital with extensive leg and head injuries, but his condition had been upgraded to "serious" by midafternoon.
The driver of the 4Runner was taken by a family member to the hospital to be checkout for minor injuries.
The cause of the crash was under investigation, though Johnson said troopers were considering that alcohol, in addition to the poor weather, played a role in the accident.
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