It’s been over a week since a crash on a winding Colorado highway claimed the lives of three young people near the Utah State border. The victims were only identified as a woman, 18, and two men, ages 21 and 22. They were known to be swimmers for the University of Wyoming, as two other passengers survived the single-car crash. The crash occurred around 2:44 in the afternoon as the SUV they were riding in veered from the southbound lane and rolled down an embankment, ejecting two passengers in the process.
More than a week later, the victims have been identified. Charlie Clark, a 19-year-old sophomore, Carson Muir, an 18-year-old freshman on the women’s team, and Luke Slabber, a 21-year-old junior, were the victims of the deadly crash in the Utah countryside. It is reported that the five weren’t on a team activity, apparently traveling for leisure.
Wyoming athletics director Tom Burman said: “My thoughts and prayers are with our swimming and diving student-athletes, coaches, families and friends. It is difficult to lose members of our University of Wyoming family, and we mourn the loss of these student-athletes. We have counseling services available to our student-athletes and coaches in our time of need.”
The coach of the Wyoming swim team, Dave Denniston, said he was “devastated,” while University of Wyoming President Ed Seidel said: “We are heartsick at the news of this terrible tragedy for our university, our state, our student-athlete community, and most importantly, the families and friends of these young people. Words are insufficient to express our sadness.”
The other two students had non-life-threatening injuries and should be able to shed more light on the circumstances surrounding the tragedy in the days to come. Most of the women’s swim team was in Houston for the Mountain West Conference Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships at the time. It is currently unknown as to why 18-year-old Carson Muir wasn’t in attendance.
It is reported that University of Wyoming students regularly frequent that stretch of highway for road trips and entertainment in nearby Fort Collins and Denver, Colorado. Investigators have determined that the Toyota Rav 4 swerved, left the southbound lane, and rolled numerous times down the embankment. It also isn’t the first time tragedy has struck the University of Wyoming on that particular stretch of highway.
According to authorities, at least 15 students have been killed on that stretch of highway in past years. Most notably, in 2001, a drunk driver killed eight members of the University of Wyoming’s cross-country team. The drunk driver was also a Wyoming student, and he spent 9 1/2 years in prison for aggravated vehicular homicide.
It is a tragedy when anyone is killed on an American highway, but when it is young people, it hits harder. These three had their entire lives ahead of them, and now, through largely no fault of their own, it is over. Accidents like this remind folks to buckle up, pay attention, and drive defensively. Unfortunately, it is too late for these three victims, but maybe students at the school will exercise extra caution in the future.
Featured image screen grab from embedded video
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