What first appeared to be an ordinary construction delay on a lonely stretch of highway west of Casper quickly turned into one of the most harrowing crash scenes many of those involved had ever witnessed.
By the time emergency crews reached U.S. Highway 20/26 near mile marker 58 Friday afternoon, two people were dead, seven others had been injured, and strangers were comforting survivors, checking on children, searching for fire extinguishers and handing out bottled water.
On Monday, the Natrona County Coroner's Office identified the two people killed as James Faris Cox, 74, and Susan Horn Cox, 69, of Golden, Colorado.
"That was my aunt and uncle killed in the wreck Friday," their nephew Lee Wolfe told Cowboy State Daily. "They were on the way to their house in Ennis, MT. They lived in Golden, CO."
He said the couple was traveling alone.
"It was just my aunt and uncle in their truck, no survivors," he said. "My two cousins and their families were heading up there at a different time thankfully."
Semi, Multiple Vehicles Involved
The Wyoming Highway Patrol said the crash involved multiple vehicles, including a semi-truck.
"Two confirmed fatalities. Seven injured. Seventeen people involved, two flown by helicopter, the others were taken to Wyoming Medical Center by ambulance," Wyoming Highway Patrol spokesman Aaron Brown said. "This is still an active investigation."
As of Monday afternoon, investigators had not released a preliminary cause of the crash, and no criminal charges had been filed.
The Natrona County Coroner's Office said it is investigating the fatalities along with the Wyoming Highway Patrol and Natrona County Sheriff's Office.
Krista Nethercott of Jackson never saw the crash itself.
She had been traveling toward Casper with a neighbor after taking her son to enroll in college when traffic suddenly came to a stop.
At first, she assumed the delay was caused by nearby road construction.
"There were these pylons on the right-hand side that kind of tell you there's construction," she said. "But there wasn't anything alerting you to slow down. There wasn't a flagger."
After waiting several minutes, she said she couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.
She stepped out of her vehicle and walked toward the front of the traffic backup.
"That's when I could see there were cars on both sides of the road," she said. "I was like, 'Oh my goodness.'"
Nethercott said she immediately ran toward the wreckage to make sure someone had called 911 and to offer whatever help she could.
She said she told him, "I'm a funeral director. I'll help you. I'm not scared to see death."
Working with another bystander, she checked on the occupants of one of the most severely damaged vehicles — the Coxes' pickup.
"The gentleman was immediately deceased," she said. "The lady probably lived a couple minutes."
She said both appeared to have been wearing seat belts.
The truck was crushed so badly, she said, that she believed rescuers ultimately would need the jaws of life to remove the couple.
"If the woman had lived longer, I don't think this gentleman and I could have ever taken her out of the vehicle," she said. "That's how crushed it was."
Despite witnessing the aftermath firsthand, Nethercott said she has no idea what caused the collision.
"I don't know if the semi-trailer didn't slow down and ran into people, or if somebody was trying to pass too many vehicles. I couldn't ascertain that at all. It was just mass metal and cars," she said.
Before The Sirens
The crash occurred about 45 miles northwest of Casper, and Nethercott estimated it was roughly 30 minutes before ambulances and fire crews reached the scene.
"It seemed like it was a long time to see paramedics," she said. "But considering you're out in the middle of nowhere, I don't think they could have gotten there any quicker."
Long before emergency vehicles arrived, however, strangers had already organized themselves.
Nethercott estimated around 10 people got out of their vehicles and immediately began helping.
One man walked the line of stopped traffic asking whether anyone had a fire extinguisher. Another, who identified himself as working at a pediatric clinic, examined a young child who remained safely strapped into a five-point car seat while the boy's injured father tried to comfort him.
Others brought camping chairs for survivors to sit in while Nethercott handed out bottled water from her vehicle.
"There were people left and right getting out of their vehicles and trying to find anything that could be used," she said. "Whether it's water, an emergency medical kit or a fire extinguisher."
The scene itself was almost impossible to comprehend.
"There was debris all over the place," she said. "Food, toilet paper, paper towels ... it looked like somebody had been camping. There was glass everywhere, bumpers everywhere."
'The Wyoming Way'
The Natrona County Fire District described responders arriving to "a very chaotic scene" involving multiple damaged vehicles, a large debris field, numerous victims and a large bystander presence.
The response included firefighters from the Natrona County Fire District, ambulances from Mills Fire Department, Banner Wyoming Medical Center and Evansville Fire/EMS, Wyoming LifeFlight, Guardian Flight, the Natrona County Sheriff's Office, Wyoming Highway Patrol, WYDOT crews, dispatchers and road construction personnel.
Fire officials said 17 people were directly involved in the crash.
In a statement, the department singled out the motorists who stopped to help before first responders arrived.
"Crews would like to send a heartfelt thank you to all the bystanders who assisted victims immediately after the crash, while waiting for help to arrive, as well as while responders were on-scene, offering shelter during the passing of a thunder cell, emotional support and minor patient care," they wrote.
"The true spirit of the 'Wyoming Way' was in full force this day."
Nethercott said, "There were people left and right getting out of their vehicles and trying to find anything that could be used. They didn't sit around and wait for somebody else to do it."
The moment she has replayed most, however, involved Susan Cox.
Although there was little anyone could do medically, Nethercott said she wanted to make sure the woman did not spend her final moments alone.
"We told her help was coming,” she said. "We don't know what happens when people are unconscious, but we wanted her to know somebody was there."
Only after that did she turn her attention to survivors who still could be saved.
Among those survivors is Kensi Van Patten. A GoFundMe campaign organized on her behalf says she suffered serious injuries in the crash and faces a lengthy recovery while her family copes with mounting medical expenses.
The fundraiser asks for donations to help with medical costs and lost income during her recovery.
The Wyoming Highway Patrol, Natrona County Sheriff's Office and Natrona County Coroner's Office continue to investigate the crash.
Kolby Fedore can be reached at kolby@cowboystatedaily.com.
