MORGAN COUNTY, Utah — A semi-truck rolled over in Weber Canyon on Tuesday, and a potassium-based fertilizer spilled on the roadway. It's one of 23 so far that have already happened in front of Fire Chief Brendel's home.
"It’s pretty crazy that 23 [since 2020] of these things happened about a mile and a half from my house,” said Chief Brendel. “That’s an extraordinary amount of rolled-over semis.”
The curve is westbound I-84 at mile post 90, in Weber Canyon.
"We’ve been very fortunate – it’s been cute, it’s been funny, because on some occasions it’s beer, hay, soda pop,” explained Brendel. “But one of these days it’s going to be much worse.”
There are signs to remind truck drivers to slow down through the canyon, but Chief Brendel is hoping the Utah Department of Transportation, which manages the road, can do more.
"Better signage closer to where the incidents happen, a reduction in speed limit, coupled with enforcement,” suggested Chief Brendel.
FOX 13 News asked UDOT if lowering the speed limit is something they can do. They said trucks already have a lower speed limit than cars, at 55 miles per hour compared to the normal limit of 65 miles per hour.
Miles Shaw, a spokesperson for UDOT, said crews are doing what they can to try to keep people safe on the roads.
"There’s a river and there’s mountains on either side of the road, so we're really constrained in what we can do just because of the sheer geography up there,” explained Shaw. “So signage is something that we're always looking at. After this last crash, we’re going to analyze where that occurred and see maybe if we could place some additional signage, maybe some flashing signs.”
These rollovers also lead to long delays for drivers. The chief is also worried about fire crews who are responding to these incidents, if there is a rollover with truly dangerous materials.
"The westbound lanes are two lanes and they are separated by the Weber River from the eastbound lanes. It’s not like we could just flip around and run away if we need to. Unfortunately, you have to think about flipping around and running away because some of this hazardous material is pretty scary,” said Chief Brendel.
But ultimately, he said it’s up to drivers.
"It’s a lot of concern for us. We want the trucks to slow down, we want them to just take it easy around the curve,” added the fire chief.
He hopes something changes.
"We can’t just ignore it, we need help. We want to make sure that nothing tragic happens here. It’s a safety issue that is paramount for me,” Chief Brendel added.
