Highway Patrol: Equipment failure likely caused deadly crash on Teton Pass

JACKSON, Wyoming (KIFI) — The Wyoming Highway Patrol says equipment failure likely caused the deadly chain reaction accident on the Teton Pass on Tuesday.

Investigators say that the dump truck was traveling eastbound down the pass when it suffered a critical failure. The driver lost control, and the crash rapidly unfolded.

First, a runaway dump truck rear-ended an eastbound motorcycle, which skidded across the westbound lane and came to a stop on the shoulder. Fortunately, WHP confirmed in a news release that the rider survived the impact.

As the dump truck barrelled downhill, it rear-ended an eastbound Chevrolet pickup. WHP says the impact forced the Chevy into oncoming traffic, where it collided head-on with a westbound Ford F-150. The F-150 overturned and went off the north side of the highway.

The dump truck then veered off the south side of the road, struck a guardrail, and swerved back into the eastbound lane. Once there, WHP says it spun out and rolled onto its side, sliding down the highway and spilling asphalt across the roadway.

While sliding on its side, the dump truck hit a westbound Chevrolet Equinox and then a westbound Subaru Outback. Both the Subaru and the dump truck collided with a drainage ditch. The impact launched the dump truck airborne before it landed on its passenger side in the eastbound lane. The Subaru rolled repeatedly, coming to a rest on its roof.

The Wyoming Highway Patrol says the driver of the Ford F-150 and the driver of the Subaru Outback both died at the scene. They have been identified as Nicholas Czernichew Besobrasow, 66, of Tetonia, and David Thomposn Page, 66, of Mammoth Lakes, California, and Jackson, Wyoming. The four other people who were injured were taken to an area hospital.

The highway was closed for an extended period on Tuesday as emergency crews cleared the spilled asphalt and wreckage. WHP also says this accident is under investigation, and any possible citations or charges are pending.