Fatal roll-over accident on I-70

By PATSY STODDARD Editor

On Sept. 4, a one car accident on I-70 left one person deceased and another had to be rescued from down a ravine. The medical helicopter was called to transport the injured party to the hospital. Lt. Gayle Jensen was on his way to Green River when he came upon the accident and stopped to render aid.
Lt. Jensen said he searched for the accident which was hard to see from the road. A semi-truck driver noticed the car off the road and called it in but didn’t stop. As Lt. Jensen was searching the area, he heard a moan. He located the woman passenger who said her husband had gone for help in the night. Lt. Jensen got medical help on the way and kept searching the area. He found the man at the bottom of the 30 foot ravine. Apparently in the night, the man had fallen off the cliff on his way to find help. Lt. Jensen said it’s possible he saw the lights from the freeway and headed in that direction. The man was also injured in the crash and was probably disoriented said Lt. Jensen.
Lt. Jensen said the couple was from Texas and they were traveling through the area. They had switched drivers along the way. It is not know the exact time of the accident, but is thought to have been approximately 1:30 a.m. according to information gathered from the woman. The man was driving at the time of the accident.
The vehicle was westbound and rolled off the inside lane and down an embankment. The vehicle rolled a couple of times and ended up lying on the drivers side. The call came in from the truck driver at 8:51 a.m. reporting the accident.
The couple was from Maud, Texas. Bryan Lee Conner, date of birth, 7/22/85 and Katherine Martin Conner, 6/8/87. Mr. Conner was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident and Mrs. Conner was life flighted to an area hospital where she is being treated for injuries. The accident was at MP 106 near the I-70 rest area at Salt Wash.
Sgt. Bob Blackburn from the Emery County Sheriff’s Office investigated the accident.