7-vehicle crash on Highway 69 sends 2 to hospitals

Rescue crews work the scene of a seven-vehicle crash on Highway 69, near the Yavpe Connector, Friday afternoon, Dec. 20, 2019. (Prescott Fire/Courtesy)

Rescue crews work the scene of a seven-vehicle crash on Highway 69, near the Yavpe Connector, Friday afternoon, Dec. 20, 2019. (Prescott Fire/Courtesy)

The crash that resulted in the temporary closure of Highway 69 on Friday, Dec. 20, involved seven vehicles and sent two people to the hospital.

On Friday, at approximately 3:45 p.m., the Prescott Regional Communications Center received numerous 911 calls reporting a multiple-vehicle accident on Highway 69 in front of Frontier Village. Initial reports were of multiple vehicles being involved with people trapped and one car on fire, according to a news release from Prescott Fire.

A First Alarm Medical response was ordered by the responding Battalion Chief. Three fire engines, one truck company, three ambulances, and a helicopter were dispatched to the scene.

On arrival, it was difficult to determine how many vehicles were involved in the accident as the scene spanned about 100 yards of the highway, said Don Devendorf, fire marshal for PFD. Initially, three vehicles with heavy damage became the focus of responders.

A fire extinguisher had been used to extinguish the fire in one of the vehicles before fire department units arrived. A police officer removed the patient from that vehicle and was attending to him on the ground near the vehicle, the news release states. Two other patients were found on the side of the highway and were being assisted by bystanders.

The patient in the vehicle that was on fire was not injured by the fire but was determined to be a Level I trauma patient and was flown by Native Air to a trauma center in Phoenix, Devendorf reported. The two other patients were evaluated, one did not require emergency medical care and the other was transported by ambulance to Yavapai Regional Medical Center in Prescott with non-life threatening injuries.

In all, there were four vehicles involved in the initial collision, and three additional vehicles collided while attempting to avoid the crash. There were no other injuries.

Highway 69 was closed for over an hour while a gas tank leak was addressed and vehicles and debris were removed from the highway, the news release states. One lane for westbound traffic was opened after the helicopter departed the scene.

Information provided by Prescott Fire Department.

Click HERE for the initial report about the crash.


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