Troopers caution about high wind driving with strong gusts expected along I-80 in Tooele County

TOOELE — With high winds and wind gusts expected through late Monday ahead of an approaching late winter storm, troopers were urging drivers and truckers not to push it on I-80 in the West Desert.

We are asking you to delay travel tomorrow (3/18) morning if possible. We’re expecting more snow, and the morning commute could be a bit tricky. Please share to spread the word. 🤝 pic.twitter.com/Ed0CzhJC73 — Utah DOT (@UtahDOT) March 17, 2025

“No cargo is worth your life,” said Utah Highway Patrol Cpl. Sterling Saiz. “No cargo is worth somebody else’s life. So that’s why we want people to focus on the safety aspect of this. Does this have to be done, or can we wait? Because if it can wait, let’s wait it out.” Forecasters said gusty southerly winds of up to 55 miles per hour were expected in the Tooele and Rush valleys through Monday evening.

Gusty southerly winds up to 55 mph are expected to develop tonight for the Tooele/Rush Valleys, and Monday morning for the remainder of western Utah. Expect these winds to continue into Monday evening, before gradually tapering behind a cold front passage. #utwxpic.twitter.com/a8dndiEuwv — NWS Salt Lake City (@NWSSaltLakeCity) March 16, 2025

Saiz said he has seen the high winds at their worst along I-80, including a time when as many as nine semis jackknifed within a mile. “We get very fast-moving weather patterns,” Saiz said. “It can go from zero to a hundred real fast out here.” The trooper encouraged drivers to slow down and have a firm grip on the wheel in windy conditions, and to potentially avoid passing through the area at all during the windiest periods. “This is a high wind area, we’re under a high wind advisory,” Saiz said. “Later this evening we are expecting the winds to really pick up and they could become very dangerous for people.” Billboards above westbound I-80 near Lake Point and Grantsville were cautioning drivers about the conditions. Saiz said the wind tends to get worse heading around the curve westbound through Aragonite. “Once you come around that curve, that’s where the weather starts to change,” he said. He said the faster the speed, the less stability drivers have in the wind, and he urged them to take that into consideration. “Even right now, where I’m trying to maintain a straight line and stuff, I can feel that we’re starting to get knocked around a little bit,” Saiz said as he drove a KSL crew in his UHP SUV. “If you’ve got a 45-mile-an-hour gust that hits you abruptly, there’s really nothing you can do about that.”

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