SALT LAKE COUNTY — After a woman died in an Interstate 15 rollover crash Sunday in South Salt Lake, investigators have identified another vehicle that may have been involved in the incident and are trying to get answers about what exactly happened.
It happened in broad daylight, and on a road that was dry at the time.
Utah Highway Patrol officials say a Dodge Charger was traveling north at approximately 4:30 p.m. near 3300 South when it went off the right side of the road and rolled. The car came to rest upside down between the northbound lanes and the 3300 South on-ramp.
NORTHERN UTAH
One dead, another injured after rollover crash on I-15 in South Salt Lake
The driver and a passenger, neither of whom were wearing a seat belt, were both ejected.
The driver, 45-year-old Erin Bingham of South Ogden, died at the hospital.
Investigators are not ruling out the possibility that road rage may be a factor. UHP Lt. Brian Peterson says investigators now know the other car was a blue Honda Civic, which they have since located. Peterson says they also want to know if road rage or aggressive driving could be factors.
“Obviously, we are going to consider that as we go through our interviews and our investigation and looking at the whole totality of the crash," Peterson said.
On Monday, court documents showed last week's shooting at the state liquor store in Taylorsville had a component of road rage.
Salt Lake County
Suspect, new details revealed in Taylorsville liquor store shooting
Tyler Traveon Mhaka is in the Salt Lake County Jail, facing seven felonies for allegedly shooting a man before he was shot by an off-duty UHP trooper. Each of the seven counts against Mhaka has road rage tacked onto it.
“We tell people to stay focused. You are trying to get from point A to point B — do it in a safe manner," said defensive driving instructor Lowell Finney, a retired engineer and safety program manager for Salt Lake City
Finney also spends time on Utah’s Capitol Hill, lobbying lawmakers to try to make our streets safer. He says there are too many deaths on Utah roads.
“Because we want to see more education, we want to see better safety on our roadways," he said.
There are certain rules of the road we all need to remember, Finney shared, especially when it comes to aggressive drivers.
“Consider your own safety the number one priority," he advised. "Rather than get into an argument because someone cut in front of you and now you want to tailgate them and try to force them — we’ve got to stop this kind of thing.”
Lt. Peterson agrees.
“Take a deep breath, slow down, create distance, don’t engage with those other individuals that are driving aggressive," he said. "If you start to be followed, drive somewhere safe like a police station. Call the police. We will respond, but just don’t engage, don’t give them what they want. Create that distance and make sure that you are safe.”
