Officer, bystanders pull teens from burning car in fatal Davis County crash

A black Nissan Maxima and a gray Acura at the scene of a fatal crash on state Route 67, Davis County, Utah, June 8, 2018 | Photo courtesy of the Utah Highway Patrol, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — One driver was killed and two people were seriously injured in a head-on crash in Davis County Friday morning. A responding police officer and bystanders helped pull two teens from one of the cars after it became fully engulfed in flames.

Charred Maxima on side of state Route 67 after a fatal two-vehicle crash, Davis County, Utah, June 8, 2018 | Photo courtesy of the Utah Highway Patrol, St. George News

The 7:30 a.m. crash killed Hyrum Stevenson Stoker, 37, of Syracuse, who was driving a silver Acura TL. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The 16-year-old driver of the other car, a black Nissan Maxima, was flown to University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City in critical condition, while the 16-year-old passenger was transported by ambulance to Primary Children’s Hospital with serious injuries.

The crash occurred on state Route 67, Legacy Highway, near mile marker 8 in Centerville.

Centerville Police officer Shaun McWilliams was in the area when the crash occurred and was first on scene to find the Maxima fully engulfed in flames with the teens trapped inside of the car, Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Eric Prescott told St. George News Saturday.

While working to free the car’s occupants, several bystanders who witnessed the crash pulled over to help the officer as additional troopers arrived and began fighting back the flames using portable fire extinguishers.

Image capture from a dashcam video of Centerville Police officer Shaun McMillan at the scene of a fatal crash on state Route 67, Davis County, Utah, June 8, 2018 | Photo courtesy of the Utah Highway Patrol, St. George News

McWilliams and bystanders struggled to rescue the two teens, who were ultimately pulled from the car and away from the flames.

Firefighters and medical crews arrived on scene to extinguish the fire and tend to the injured.

Witnesses at the scene told police the Maxima was heading north on Legacy Highway and crossed over into the southbound lane, crashing head-on into the Acura.

Several witnesses also told police that the driver of the Maxima was “driving recklessly prior to the collision,” according to a statement issued by UHP.

Both teens remain in critical and serious condition, Prescott told St. George News Saturday.

A statement released by the Centerville Police Department Friday afternoon said the officer “put his own life in jeopardy as he and some citizens struggled heroically to remove two young men from this burning car.”

A black Nissan Maxima and a gray Acura at the scene of a fatal crash on state Route 67, Davis County, Utah, June 8, 2018 | Photo courtesy of the Utah Highway Patrol, St. George News

“We are proud of the heroic actions exhibited by Centerville Police Officer Shaun McWilliams and other by-standers who assisted him,” the statement said.

Troopers are looking at aggressive and excessive speed as a factor in the crash, Prescott said, noting that UHP’s Multi-Disciplinary Accident Investigation Team was out at the scene on Legacy Highway Saturday morning to determine how the crash occurred.

The team performed a scan of the area using Faro 3D laser scanning technology, which creates a precise 3D model of the scene using lasers and a camera that can later be analyzed by investigators.

The technology typically takes in more than one million data points by picking up every detail of the scene. The overlaid data points then produce an intricate 3D image.

The resulting image is so detailed as to allow investigators to see the minutest element the scene. It can be used to analyze speed, directions and crash dynamics, UHP Trooper Chris Lewis told St. George News previously.

This report is based on statements from police or other emergency responders and may not contain the full scope of findings.

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Twitter: @STGnews

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2018, all rights reserved.

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4 Comments

  • Kilroywashere June 9, 2018 at 9:28 pm

    Only one word to describe the officers and good Samaritans involved. Angels. Heroes is not enough.

  • old school June 10, 2018 at 9:56 am

    They need to raise the driving age to 18

  • comments June 10, 2018 at 1:14 pm

    not much left of those cars. that was a nasty one. it’s a shame these teens acted in such a selfish way as to take someone’s life thru their recklessness.

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