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SALT LAKE CITY — A family is safe after their vehicle and trailer flipped Sunday evening in Parleys Canyon.
The couple and their two dogs were on their way home from a camping trip when the accident happened at milepost 133 on Interstate 80 westbound. They told witnesses they could tell something was off, and next thing they knew, they were in the air.
"We could see the trailer swaying back and forth — it was kind of windy," Jared Garlick said. Garlick and his friend, Alex Hoang, are students at the University of Utah medical school and were driving a few cars back from the trailer. "It all happened so fast. Cars started diverting and braking, trying to get out of the way."
Garlick said he and Hoang pulled over and talked to the couple until emergency crews arrived. He said they had minor contusions, but both seemed alert and oriented. The dogs were unscathed. Authorities confirmed the couple had not sustained any major injuries.
Traffic in the canyon was fairly heavy, but going about 55–60 mph, according to Garlick. He believes the couple were saved because they were wearing their seatbelts.
"The car looked completely destroyed and the trailer was definitely demolished — there was pretty much nothing left," Garlick said. "The fact that they were wearing their seatbelts definitely saved their lives, there. It could have been much more severe."
Traffic on the three-lane freeway is down to one lane while the accident is cleaned up.
Stay with ksl.com, KSL TV and KSL Newsradio for more information as it is made available.
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