Driver inattention being investigated as possible cause for fatal crash west of Kemmerer

KEMMER, Wyo. (KIFI) - A fatal crash occurred Wednesday around milepost 43 on US 30 west of Kemmerer, Wyoming. 

At 2:05 p.m., Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers were notified of a motor vehicle collision.

A 2008 Mazda CX-9 was traveling west on US 30, and the driver attempted to pass by a semi-tractor trailer and failed to see a 2008 Toyota Sienna traveling eastbound. The drivers of both vehicles tried to avoid a collision by moving onto the roadway's shoulder but collided head-on.       

The driver of the Mazda has been identified as 55-year-old West Jordan, Utah resident Wendy W. Stapel. Stapel was wearing a seatbelt and transported to South Lincoln Medical Center, where she succumbed to her injuries from the crash. The passengers in the Mazda have been identified as 27-year-old Kearns, Utah resident Ashlee Johnson, and three juvenile passengers. All were properly restrained and transported to South Lincoln Medical Center for injuries sustained in the crash. 

The driver of the Toyota has been identified as 39-year-old Richmond, Utah resident Trevor Jackson. Jackson was wearing a seatbelt and transported by helicopter to the University of Utah for injuries sustained in the crash.  he passengers in the Toyota have been identified as 37-year-old Richmond, Utah resident Seantae Jackson,  37-year-old Salt Lake City, Utah resident Melissa Zelig, and two juvenile passengers.  The passengers were either flown to the University of Utah or transported by ground ambulance to South Lincoln Medical Center for injuries sustained in the crash.   

Driver inattention on the part of Stapel is being investigated as a potential contributing factor.

This is the 51^st fatality on Wyoming's roadways in 2021 compared to 53 in 2020, 92 in 2019, and 54 in 2018 to date.