WASATCH COUNTY, Utah — The two drivers killed in a multi-vehicle crash near Deer Creek Reservoir on Tuesday have been identified, with both men from Midway.
The accident occurred on U.S. Highway 189 at approximately 2 p.m. just north of Wallsburg. Both directions were shut down for hours.
“Obviously if this was your family, then you would hope that we would do the best job that we can to investigate and determine why this happened to your loved one,” said Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Steven Crowe.
Crowe said an electric car driven by Jeremy Pope was traveling southbound at a high rate of speed when it crossed over into northbound lands and struck an SUV head-on.
“The skid marks indicate that it was going too fast to go around the corner,” said Crowe. “It went into oncoming traffic and then hit a vehicle in a T-bone fashion.”
Both Pope and the driver of the SUV, 26-year-old Hanani Aiono, died at the scene.
“The way it impacted the GMC Yukon was enough to basically lift the Yukon off the ground and throw it into the air and land off the roadway,” he said.
Two other vehicles were involved, but the drivers suffered only minor injuries.
Aiono's family told FOX 13 News that he had "with lots of life ahead of him."
“We do document the scene very thoroughly to try to determine exactly what happened and why it happened. Obviously, we’ll complete our report and try to get closure for those who lost their loved ones,” said Crowe.
