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PROVO — An accident involving four cars and temporarily closing Provo Canyon Saturday afternoon resulted from a drowsy driver falling asleep at the wheel, officials say.
On Saturday around 3:15 p.m., a white pickup was driving down Provo Canyon when the driver fell asleep and didn’t turn at a curve in the road, causing the vehicle to drift into oncoming traffic and collide with a gold Toyota, according to the Utah Highway Patrol.
The impact disconnected the pickup’s front left tire, waking the driver up and prompting him to swerve to the right and into a black Honda, according to troopers. The pickup then careened left and hit a brown Dodge, which flipped.
The pickup hit the guardrail on the right shoulder for the eastbound lane and then swerved back across until it struck the center median’s concrete barrier, according to the Utah Highway Patrol.
It doesn’t appear that any of the drivers were impaired, troopers said, and the accident was likely caused by drowsy driving.
All injuries sustained in the accident were minor, according to the Utah Highway Patrol. The driver of the Toyota was taken to Timpanogos hospital for treatment, the driver and passenger of the Honda were taken to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, and the driver of the Dodge did not need medical care.
Provo Canyon was closed to eastbound drivers while the accident was cleaned Saturday afternoon, according to the Utah Highway Patrol. It has since been reopened.
