BLAINE COUNTY, Idaho, June 21, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — A 27-year-old Orem, Utah, man was killed in a three-vehicle crash in Idaho on Saturday.
At approximately 8:36 a.m., deputies responded to the crash on state Highway 75 near mile marker 103, approximately one mile north of the U.S. Highway 20 junction, said a news release from Blaine County Sheriff’s Office.
A 2012 Ford E-250 van-front U-Haul truck was traveling northbound on Highway 75, and a white 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee was behind the U-Haul truck, the news release said. David Marquez, the driver from Utah, was the sole occupant of a 2015 Toyota Highlander traveling southbound on Highway 75.
“For unknown reasons, the Toyota crossed the center line and entered into the northbound lane of travel,” the news release said. “The driver of the U-Haul truck attempted to avoid a head-on collision by moving to the northbound shoulder, however, the Toyota sideswiped the driver’s side of the U-Haul truck. The impact broke the truck’s dual rear axle and sheered off a section of siding.”
Despite attempting to avoid the collision, the Jeep then sideswiped the U-Haul truck’s driver side with the Jeep’s driver’s side. The Jeep then crashed into a barbed-wire fence on the east side of the highway.
“The occupants of the Jeep reported only minor injuries,” the news release. “The driver of the U-Haul was transported by ground ambulance to St. Luke’s Wood River Medical Center for non-life-threatening injuries. Marquez was pronounced dead at the scene.”
All three vehicles were towed from the scene with substantial damage. The crash remains under investigation.
