9 dead after blown tire causes van to roll near tremonton
Utah State University faculty and students offered their “hope, love and support” Tuesday after a fatal accident that killed eight Utah State University students and one instructor.
During what should have been the College of Agriculture’s annual “Ag Week,” the university was in mourning as students pinned white ribbons on their clothes and participated in a candle light vigil on the Taggart Student Center patio.
“We are banded together to support our fellow aggies,” said Cody Bingham, ASUSU Agriculture senator. “The effort we’ve seen so far shows what it means to be a true aggie.”
The accident occurred Monday around 4:30 p.m, when a group of nine students from the College of Agriculture and their instructor Evan Parker, were returning to Logan on Interstate 84 in a 15-passenger university van after an agricultural field trip.
The van’s left rear tire blew out causing the vehicle to skid out of control and roll several times off the right side of the road, said Utah Highway Patrol Lt. Ed Michaud said.
All 10 individuals were ejected from the vehicle. Six were pronounced dead on the scene, and two individuals died later that evening.
Killed were:
Steven D. Bair, 24, Moses Lake, Wash.; agricultural machinery technology major
Dusty Dean Fuhriman, 22, Tremonton, Utah; agricultural education major
Justin W. Gunnell, 24, Wellsville, Utah; agricultural systems major
Justin Huggins, 22, Bear River City, Utah; agricultural machinery technology major
Jonathan Dennis Jorgensen, 22, Hyrum, Utah; agricultural business major
Curtis A. Madsen, 23, Payson, Utah; history major
Ryan Wayne McEntire, 22, West Point, Utah; agricultural machinery technology major
Bradley G. Wilcox, 26, Salt Lake City, Utah; crop science major
Evan Parel Parker, 45, Hooper, Utah; instructor and academic advisor, Agricultural Machinery Technology programs, Agricultural Systems and Technology Education Department
Jared Paul Nelson, 22, an agricultural education major from Logan remains in critical condition at McKay-Dee Hospital. Robert Petersen, 21, an agricultural machinery technology major is also in critical condition at Ogden Regional Medical Center.
All 11 men aboard the university-owned van did not appear to have been wearing seat belts, Michaud said.
“If they had been seat belted … we may not be dealing with as many serious injuries,” Michaud said.
Glenn Ford, vice president for Business and Finance, said Parker, who was driving the car had a commercial drivers license and received the required one-day training to drive university-owned vehicles.
“Our policies and training focus a great deal on wearing seat belts,” he said.
Bruce Miller, Agriculture department head and professor said he has driven with Parker on several occasions and was always concerned about the students safety.
“He was the heart of the (agriculture) program and cared very much for the students,” Miller said.
The university is currently in the process of evaluating its policies for driving university-owned vehicles. However, they are confident the accident was not a result of faulty equipment. The van they were using was inspected on June 27, Albrecht said.
Utah Highway Patrol officers are still investigating the accident but do suspect that speed was definitely a factor, said Michaud.
All “Ag Week” activities were canceled for the week except for a “Day on the Quad” where students and friends can write notes on posters for families of the victims.
The victims were all freshmen and sophomores and were very dedicated to the USU’s agriculture program, Cockett said at a press conference for the accident Tuesday afternoon.
“These students were the salt of the earth,” Cockett said. “Their presence is missed within the university.”
Most of the agriculture students heard of the accident at a college picnic Monday night. Many were shocked and looked around wondering who wasn’t there, said Chad Warnick, a senior majoring in agriculture education.
“It was a tragedy,” he said. “It’s a part of the college that’s gone and can’t be replaced and that’s going to stay in our memories for a long time.”
Because USU is a community school with a smaller number of students, many of them know each other, making this accident very sensitive, said Quinn Millet, ASUSU president.
“The ag students are so close,” Millet said.
The main focus for university administrators now is to inform and help family and students who were most impacted by the accident, said Juan Franco, vice president for Student Services.
“This tragedy really does put things into perspective,” said USU President Stan Albrecht. “I’ve been around the university for most of my life and you always deal with tragedy, but the university has never had anything of this magnitude happen before.”
In an effort to pay respect to the victims, Albrecht has canceled all activities for the Presidential Inauguration that was planned for the week of Oct. 10-14.
“The inauguration was to be a time of celebration for the university, and in light of the circumstances, we feel that a celebration of this magnitude would be inappropriate.”
USU’s College of Agriculture has about 800 undergraduate students and 200 graduate students currently enrolled.
“This is a great university,” Albrecht said. “One of the things we’re most proud of is its sense of community and its sense of family.”
-mmackay@cc.usu.edu