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COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS — A man who was allegedly retrieving a water bottle he dropped while speeding down Highland Drive caused a three-vehicle crash that left a woman in critical condition after being trapped inside her car for an hour Wednesday night.
Santiago Jacob Hernandez, 22, was arrested for investigation of negligently operating a vehicle resulting in serious injury, possession of a weapon by a restricted person, drug possession, possession of drug paraphernalia, and never obtaining a license.
Cottonwood Heights police say at about 9:15 p.m., a pickup truck heading north on Highland Drive crossed four lanes of traffic and collided head-on with another vehicle near the off-ramp of Interstate 215, near 6200 South. The truck ended up on top of the vehicle, crushing the top of the car and trapping a 33-year-old woman.
For almost an hour, crews worked "desperately" to extricate the woman, police said. Initially, officers didn't know how many people were trapped in the car. Police say the woman was conscious and communicating with emergency crews the entire time. A semi-tractor tow truck was brought to the scene and lifted the pickup enough that rescue crews could pull the woman out of her vehicle.
Once extricated, the woman was taken to the hospital in extremely critical condition. On Thursday, police said she had been upgraded to just critical condition.
A third vehicle was also involved. That driver was taken to a local hospital with minor injuries, according to police.
When police talked to Hernandez, he "made a statement saying he had dropped a water bottle and had bent down to retrieve it causing his vehicle to veer across those lanes," according to a police booking affidavit.
Investigators did a data analysis of his pickup and determined it was "traveling at a speed of 65.9 mph. The posted speed limit on Highland Drive is 40 mph," the affidavit states.
After it was determined that he would be arrested and taken to jail, police searched Hernandez and found "14 blue pills, which he stated were fentanyl, along with drug paraphernalia," according to the affidavit. A handgun was also located in his wrecked vehicle. Due to Hernandez being in possession of illegal drugs, he was determined to be a "weapons restricted" person, police stated.
