This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Airborne debris kicked up by another vehicle has been blamed for a rollover accident that injured a teenage driver and her parents late Wednesday night on Interstate 80.
Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Todd Royce said the 16-year-old female driver swerved to avoid the debris, believed to be remnants of a truck retread tire, when it was dislodged by a car in front of her about 11 p.m. Wednesday.
She ran off the road and rolled down an embankment at mile post 99, near the Tooele-Salt Lake County line.
Troopers closed down that section of I-80 for about an hour as wreckage was cleared and helicopters landed to take the girl's mother and father to University Hospital in Salt Lake City. They were reported to be in serious condition on Thursday.
The girl, who suffered minor injuries, was transported by ambulance to a local hospital, Royce said.
All three people in the car were wearing seatbelts, which troopers said likely saved their lives.
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