Woman dies, two injured in Mount Rose Highway accident

Submitted by Editor on Fri, 12/21/2012 - 6:19pm

A woman died Friday and two were injured in a vehicle accident east of Joy Lake Road on State Route 431, Mount Rose Highway, the Nevada Highway Patrol reports.
The accident happened shortly before 2 p.m. and closed the highway for more than an hour. The woman's name has not been released pending notification of family members.

Below is a NHP news release by Trooper Chuck Allen:

At approximately 1:50 pm this afternoon, troopers from the Nevada Highway Patrol responded to a motor vehicle collision on State Route 431, the Mount Rose Highway, just east of Joy Lake Road. The preliminary crash investigation details indicate a white Chevy Suburban was traveling west on the two-lane highway when the female driver apparently lost traction.

Snow was falling and blowing at the time of the crash. Her vehicle traveled into the opposing lane as it was rotating in a clock-wise direction and was struck by a Dodge Ram 2500 pick-up pulling a two-axle trailer. The front of the Dodge struck the left side of the Chevy SUV. The female driver sustained life-threatening injuries while the two occupants in the Dodge received injuries believed to be minor in nature.

All three motorists were transported from the scene by ground ambulance and taken to Renown Regional Medical Center. The female driver was pronounced deceased at the hospital as a result of the injuries sustained in the crash. Once her next-of-kin have been notified we will release her name as well as the names of the other crash victims.

The accident forced the temporary closure of the highway for almost an hour before troopers were able to open one lane to alternate traffic in each direction around the scene. We are hoping to have the other lane opened by 6:00 pm, but we will have staff on scene performing traffic control duties until that happens.

With the winter storms in our area today and through Sunday, it is imperative that motorists drive extra cautiously especially when roads are snow covered or icy and when visibility is reduced.