Utah Head-On Crash Shows You Always Have To Be Ready

We can’t count how many times people have exclaimed how boring driving is. For many it’s a chore they’d rather avoid, like doing the dishes or folding laundry. Unfortunately, unlike those other two tasks, treating driving too casually can lead to a fatal tragedy in mere seconds. A great example of how quickly things can go sideways on the road has been shared by the Utah County Sheriff’s Office.

Brush up on your driving skills with this helpful video.

According to the law enforcement agency, on October 7 a 17-year-old driver traveling west on SR73 in Eagle Mountain drifted over the painted median and into oncoming traffic. Immediately, he hit a car head-on, spinning him around violently when he collided with a second car.

His vehicle flipped onto its roof and we can see it slam into a third car head-on, the vehicle that was recording everything from its dashcam. Thanks to that footage, we know the whole accident unfolded in two seconds.

How fast are your reflexes? No matter how quick they are, if you’re zoned out and treating driving like a horrific chore from which you’d rather stay detached, you’re not going to react in time to a rapidly evolving situation like this as it unfolds on the road directly in front of you.

In two seconds lives were changed. Thankfully, by the grace of God, nobody was killed in this chain reaction. The sheriff’s office says only three people were transported to the hospital, all with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

Freeways like this without center dividers are especially dangerous since crossover accidents often prove fatal. The higher speeds cut your reaction time in such a situation way down. And while that certainly was a factor in this crash, we don’t know what caused the teenage driver to veer into oncoming traffic.

Even without that information, we can say confidently this is prime evidence why drivers need to stay engaged while behind the wheel. Distractions are at an all-time high and the signs of it are everywhere. Stay alert, stay engaged, stay safe everyone.

Images via Utah County Sheriff’s Office