Driver flips truck at Utah high school, two students injured

Taylorsville • A teenage driver flipped his truck during a street race Wednesday near Taylorsville High School, injuring himself and a passenger who was riding in the truck's bed.

The accident happened about 2 p.m. when a small brown Mazda truck rolled over in a parking lot adjacent to the high school. Unified Police Department Lt. Justin Hoyal said the driver and passenger, both 16-year-old boys, were transported via ambulance to Intermountain Medical Center. They both had serious injuries, though Hoyal said those injuries were not life-threatening.

Two other teenagers were riding in the bed of the truck. Hoyal said they either jumped or fell out before the accident and escaped major injuries. A passenger sitting inside the truck also walked away without suffering serious harm.

According to Hoyal, the accident happened as the truck raced another vehicle along a street that runs parallel to the school's track and football field. Both vehicles were traveling north and turned as they reached the parking lot. The truck then entered a mostly empty parking lot and tried to make a sharp turn, which caused it to roll over.

The parking lot is part of a still unfinished special needs school.

Hoyal said shortly after the accident that police still were trying to locate the other vehicle involved in the race.

Taylorsville High School principal Garett Muse said all of the teenagers involved in the accident are students at the school.

By 3 p.m. the accident was cleaned up and all that remained were tire tracks on the asphalt. Nearby, members of the high school track and field team practiced high jumping.

Hoyal said the driver of the truck would likely be charged with reckless driving.

According to Muse, officials at the school are looking at attendance records to see if the students were skipping class, which ends at 2:10 p.m., when the accident happened.

jdalrymple@sltrib.com

Twitter: @jimmycdii