Eyewitnesses who were mere feet away from a side-by-side that veered off Sand Flats Road near Rotary Park on Thursday afternoon said that the vehicle plowed through a vinyl fence, a small tree and a metal fence before skidding to a halt roughly 500 feet away.
Michael Chacon, Rick Martin and Rocky Audenried, all employees of Moab Construction, said they were helping a homeowner build a garage next to his house when the side-by-side came screeching through the front yard, missing the men by two feet.
“I thought somebody blew something up, and then here comes the Rhino (the side-by-side), jumping over all our tools, through a tree, through a metal fence, and then across that parking lot within four seconds,” Chacon said.
Chacon said the vehicle was going as fast as it could go; Martin said that it was going at least 50 miles per hour. Both said that they saw the driver, who was the only occupant of the vehicle, standing and walking about after the crash, complaining of fatigue.
Tineka Kerby, who lives in the house next to where the side-by-side stopped, said that she was first on the scene after the incident.
Kerby helped the man out of the vehicle, although he was fine to get out on his own she said, and that he complained of dizziness after she asked whether he was okay.
The Times-Independent is awaiting an update from Moab City Police, which is investigating the accident, regarding the man’s current health status and more information about how the incident occurred.