Two people were killed and four injured in a crash on Interstate 80 near Evanston that closed part of the highway for several hours Sunday, according to the Wyoming Highway Patrol.
The patrol reported that Wolf Point, Montana, residents William Baker, 71, and Scobey Baker, a juvenile, both died when the SUV they were in was hit just inside the Wyoming border on the interstate.
According to patrol reports, the SUV driven by William Baker was stopped behind a pickup truck on the interstate because of an accident on the roadway ahead of them. Reports said the SUV was hit by a pickup truck driven by Braylin Wertenberger, 29, of Greeley, Colorado, and was pushed into the pickup truck.
Wertenberger failed to see the stopped traffic, the patrol said.
William Baker died after being flown to the University of Utah for treatment, while Scobey Baker died at the scene of the accident. A third passenger in the SUV was taken to Evanston Regional Hospital for treatment.
Wertenberger was also transported to the hospital in Evanston while his passenger, Mollie Wright of Brighton, Colorado, was flown to the University of Utah. Their conditions are unknown.
One passenger in the pickup truck in front of the SUV was taken to the Evanston hospital for treatment.
Speed and driver inattention on the part of Wertenberger are being investigated as contributing factors in the accident. This marks the 53rd and 54th fatalities on Wyoming’s roadways this year, compared to 59 in 2020.
