Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- A $1,500 reward is offered to identify a driver involved in a crash.
- The crash caused a semi to jackknife, shutting down southbound lanes temporarily.
- Ralph Smith Company urges accountability, citing erratic driving as a safety concern.
FARMINGTON — There's a $1,500 reward out for identifying the driver of a car that appeared to cut off a semitruck, causing it to jackknife on the freeway. No one was injured; however, the crash shut down the southbound lanes for some time.
When truck drivers hit the road, they're thinking about possible obstacles they may encounter.
Truck driver and Ralph Smith Company Vice President Doug Smith said he won't call driving a semitruck scary, "but it's edgy."
Smith has been behind the wheel for 56 years. He said his job comes with risks, including crashes like the one his employee was involved in on Tuesday.
He described the accident involving his employee and a blue-gray Honda.
"One of our drivers got clipped as he passed an off ramp and (the Honda) steered him into the wall and pushed him into the concrete barriers," Smith said. "And ruined (the) day for a lot of people."
The driver of the Honda never stopped.
The truck driver walked away without injuries.
"He's back to work. He got right back on the horse," Smith said.
However, the driver did not leave the accident without emotions, according to Smith.
"You take deep breaths and say, 'Am I OK? Is anyone else hurt? What's happening next? Am I going to be a secondary accident from another truck piling me into the concrete,'" he said.
Smith's company is looking for the driver of this bluish-gray Honda, which it thinks could be an Accord.
"So, we have a $1,500 reward for somebody that can put us together with them," Smith said.
He said the company's drivers have dash cameras because of incidents like this.
"The Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety alliance has asked carriers like ourselves to send them clips of the erratic driver behavior that we deal with every day," Smith said. "This is what's driving insurance rates up."
He said people need to be held accountable for their actions.
"They caused an accident, and they are out of here," Smith said.
As truck drivers, Smith said they can only do so much.
"You want to leave them (drivers) enough room that they can make their mistake," he said. "But, the people zipping in and out of the freeway, they need more aggressive driving citations in Utah to catch those people."
If you have information on this crash or the driver who was involved, you can contact Ralph Smith Company at 801-295-8824.
Contributing: Devin Oldroyd
