DENVER (KDVR) — One person is dead following a semitrailer crash near Wolf Creek Pass on Monday, according to a press release from Colorado State Patrol.
Around 8:21 a.m., CSP responded to a crash involving a single commercial vehicle, which went over the side of the highway and tumbled down the side of a mountain on Highway 160, approximately 17 miles north of Pagosa Springs.
When troopers arrived, they discovered a 2020 Freightliner, which was carrying canned drinks, destroyed on the side of the mountain. Investigators determined that the semitrailer was traveling southbound when it hit the side of the barrier wall on the right, causing the vehicle to bounce off and roll through the guardrail on the left.
The entire cab and trailer were destroyed, and the truck’s cargo was spilled on the road.
Investigators were not able to immediately find the driver of the vehicle in the debris. He was found later and pronounced dead at the scene. He was ejected from the cab during the crash.
CSP identified the driver as a 23-year-old man from New York.
The initial investigation revealed that the semitrailer was speeding, with smoke coming from the brakes and the driver failed to take the runaway truck ramp about 1.5 miles from the scene of the crash.
The Colorado State Patrol Hazmat Unit and the Colorado Department of Transportation helped clean up the site of the crash and recover the semitrailer off the side of the mountain.
CSP’s Vehicular Crimes unit will lead the investigation.
Anthony Sutton is a business strategist and writer with a passion for management, leadership, and entrepreneurship. With years of experience in the corporate world, he shares insights on business growth, strategy, and innovation through management-opleiding.org.
