Woman dies on pass
Tracy Whitehead surveys the wreckage of a tractor-trailer Wednesday after the truck overturned on a runaway truck ramp the night before on Teton Pass. One of the two occupants of the semi died in the accident. NEWS&GUIDE PHOTO / BRADLY J. BONERView our entire photo gallery >>
By Amanda H. Miller, Jackson Hole, Wyo.
October 30, 2008
A Texas woman died Tuesday night when an overweight truck crashed on a runaway ramp on Teton Pass.
Florita Vega, 35, was a passenger in the truck her husband, Gilberto Riojas, 44, drove for Truss World. Both of them were wearing seat belts, said Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper Andrew Jackson.
The truck, hauling two-by-six wood, was 18,000 pounds heavier than the 60,000-pound limit on Teton Pass, Jackson said.
The limit is meant to keep heavy trucks off the road. The steep grade of the pass is dangerous for heavy trucks, as it can be too much for their brakes, Jackson said. Troopers have been writing tickets to drivers bringing overweight trucks across the pass this summer, Jackson said.
Trailers are banned on the pass in the winter, but that restriction has not gone into effect yet.
The truck was eastbound on Highway 22, coming down from Teton Pass toward Wilson about 9:40 p.m., when its brakes failed, Jackson said. The driver took the second runaway truck ramp, which is accessed by crossing the oncoming lane of traffic because it is on the north side of the road.
“I believe his load shifted or came loose and caused him to tip over,” Jackson said.
Vega was pinned in the crushed truck cab and had to be extricated. She was pronounced dead at the scene, Jackson said.
Riojas was taken to St. John’s Medical Center with minor injuries.
Riojas was in good condition Wednesday afternoon at St. John’s Medical Center, according to Karen Connelly, spokeswoman for the hospital.
This was the second large truck to crash on Teton Pass in less than two months. A dump truck, which was not overweight, crashed at the base of Teton Pass after it lost its brakes Sept. 6. No one was seriously injured in that crash.
A truck that was 20,000 pounds overweight and hauling potatoes over the pass crashed near Trail Creek Road in May 2007, killing the driver.
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