SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Oct. 19, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — A truck left the road in the vicinity of 400 South and 500 West in downtown Salt Lake City Wednesday morning, injuring two people, one of them critically, and knocking down a large power pole.
According to Salt Lake Police Department detective Robert Ungricht, the accident occurred when the driver of a pickup truck idling at the corner of 400 South and 500 West took off suddenly and clipped the back end of a car in front of him. That sent the pickup careening onto the sidewalk, where two men seated on the north side of the street were hit and injured. The two were transported to local hospitals in serious and critical condition.
The truck also hit two light poles and a large power pole. Rocky Mountain Power is on the scene, and has cut electricity to the affected area so crews can begin emergency repairs.
The pickup truck driver and several witnesses to the accident are being questioned by police who have begun a full-scale investigation.
One witness, who was less than 20 feet away from the point where the truck impacted the power pole, told Gephardt Daily that he and a nurse who happened by the scene, performed CPR on the critically injured man.
“I checked the victim’s pulse and he was gone, but I owed it to him to try reviving him,” Jason Olsen said. Olsen said he and the victim have both been staying at the homeless shelter and are friends.
Olsen described the scene as “horrifying,” especially when he saw the man he knows dragged under the truck, bloodied, and partially crushed.
Debris from the accident is spread across 500 West near the corner of 400 South. Drivers are being advised to avoid the area while cleanup and investigation of the scene is underway.
This is a breaking news story and Gephardt Daily will be updating as new information comes in.
