Two Utah men were severely injured in a single-vehicle crash on County Road G Wednesday night.
Cortez Fire Chief Jeff Vandevoorde said emergency responders were called to the 11000 block of the road about 6:30 p.m. A single vehicle with two occupants had apparently driven off the road and hit a large tree. The driver was airlifted to a Farmington hospital by helicopter, and the passenger was transported to Southwest Memorial Hospital.
Fire and rescue personnel from Cortez responded to the crash along with Colorado State Patrol troopers, Vandevoorde said. A Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office deputy provided traffic control during the investigation. When emergency vehicles arrived, he said, one of the car’s occupants was lying against the tree, and the other was “hanging out of the car.” Neither appeared to have been wearing seat belts, he said, and both suffered head trauma and other injuries.
The state patrol investigation is ongoing, but Vandevoorde said preliminary signs pointed to alcohol and speed as the main factors in the crash. He would not release the names of the people involved, but said both men were from Utah and appeared to be on their way home. Capt. Adrian Driscoll of Colorado State Patrol Troop 5A said charges are pending against the driver.
