CEDAR CITY, Utah – A Utah Highway Patrol trooper is in critical condition after he was hit by a vehicle while responding to a car accident on Interstate 15 near Cedar City Monday afternoon.
At about 3 p.m., UHP received a report of a crash near mile marker 58.
The responding trooper found a white Ford passenger car had hydroplaned and collided with the cable barriers alongside the freeway, according to a press release from Cedar City police.
As Trooper David Schiers was outside his car investigating the crash a black BMW struck the Ford, according to the news release.
“The force of this collision caused the Ford passenger car to strike the trooper,” the release stated. “The Ford was pushed on top of the trooper.”
The dashcam video below shows Schiers talking to the driver in the Ford vehicle when the BMW slides out of control and crashes into the car and trooper.
The Cedar City Fire Department had been called to the scene to assist with the previous accident.
When they arrived, crews used the “Jaws of Life” equipment to lift the vehicle off the trooper, the release reports.
Schiers was taken to Valley View Medical Center for apparent serious injuries.
Cedar City authorities are investigating both crashes.
At this time, the release states, heavy rainfall and pooling water on I-15 are believed to be the major contributors to the crashes.
There were no other injuries reported by the occupants of the other vehicles involved.
