UPDATE AUG. 26: The Nevada Highway Patrol has identified the deceased driver as 23-year-old Tyrece Stoll Cromwell from Las Vegas. NHP also acknowledged erroneously identifying Stoll as a female initially.
ORIGINAL STORY
LAS VEGAS (KTNV) -- The Nevada Highway Patrol is investigating a deadly late-night crash Friday in west Las Vegas that involved in a wrong-way driver.
Troopers were called to a reported collision on the 215 Beltway and Tropicana Avenue just before 11:30 p.m. that involved four vehicles.
A blue Mazda was heading the wrong way on the 215, northbound in the southbound lanes, before it collided with a Ford F-250 that was traveling southbound.
The impact caused the Ford truck to leave the roadway and impact the left concrete barrier, while the Mazda rotated across the travel lanes and was struck in the driver’s side door by a Hyundai.
A fourth vehicle, a BMW, also struck a tire that was from the Mazda vehicle.
The woman behind the wheel of the Mazda was pronounced deceased at the scene, according to the NHP.
There were three occupants in the Hyundai, one in the Ford and one in the BMW. The people who were in the Hyundai and the Ford truck were transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Troopers say August has already been a deadly month on Nevada's roads with Friday's crash remaining under investigation and unknown if impairment was an immediate factor.
Andrew Bennett with the Nevada Office of Traffic Safety spoke to 13 Action News about the deadly crash on Saturday.
While this particular crash is still under investigation, Bennett says that in most wrong-way crashes, impairment is an issue.
“We do have an impairment issue in this town because if you’re driving sober and paying full attention, you’re going to realize you’re driving the wrong way rather quickly. There’s signage, there’s reflectors on the road that are red… there’s a million different things that will tell you that you’re driving the wrong way, including cars coming towards you when they’re not supposed to be.”
Bennett also said that the state of Nevada is up in the number of fatalities compared to this same time last year.
But even if numbers were not going up, each fatal crash changes someone’s life.
“Lives are forever changed, families are forever broken when crashes like this happen.”
If you realize you are driving the wrong way, here is what you can do.
“I recommend that you stop, find the nearest shoulder, make sure it is not a traveling one, and try to turn around as safely as possible. That’s an extremely dangerous situation. It can be an honest mistake. But again, most of the time, it is because of impairment and that is an issue.”
If you see someone driving the wrong way, call *NHP or 911. If could be a life-threatening situation that you can help avoid.
