PNS 1: Accident

Tragic Crash for Utah State University


At four p.m. today a Utah State University van carrying ten Utah State students and one instructor rolled on Interstate 84 just west of Tremonton. As part of Utah State Universitys Agriculture week, the students and instructor were taking a field trip.
Kyle Holden had accompanied the group and was driving alongside them when he noticed something was not right. He reportedly saw smoke coming from the back of the vehicle. Then witnessed the van swerve in and out of lanes before the wheels caught and it spun out of control. "It all happened so fast…." Holden said.
Lt. Jason Jensen of the highway patrol was the first law enforcement offical to arrive on the scene. Jensen said that three to four individuals were pronounced dead at the scene and the rest were taken to near by hospitals. He speculates that the van was going at least 95 to 100 miles per hour and that this factor was a major contributor to the accident. In Jensens 15 years of experience he has never seen a crash of this calibur when seat belts were being worn.
Noel Cockett, Dean of the college of Agriculture, got a phone call from a university rep. Telling her of the news. Evan Parker, the driver, was pronounced dead at the scene. Evan was 45 years old. Steven Bear, 24, also pronounced dead at the scene along with Brad Wilcox and Curt Madsen. Jared Nelson and Robert Peterson are recovering at Ogden Regional Hospital. The names of the other victims are being withheld.