DUCHESNE COUNTY, UTAH — Three members of the same family were killed Friday afternoon when a semi-truck overcorrected into oncoming traffic on US Highway 40 near milepost 82 in Duchesne County, hitting their Kia hatchback head-on and killing all three on impact. Community members have identified the victims as Rick and Heather, a husband and wife who were both Licensed Clinical Social Workers working in Vernal, and their son Jackson, 18.
The crash occurred around 2:12 p.m. on August 28. A black 2003 Peterbilt traveling eastbound drifted to the right, struck a guardrail, overcorrected, and crossed into westbound lanes, hitting the blue 2023 Kia head-on. The semi driver was transported to a nearby hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Utah Highway Patrol identified the victims as a 52-year-old woman driving, a man in the front passenger seat, and an 18-year-old man in the rear. A community member corrected the man’s age, noting he was 54, not 42 as initially reported. The family’s names have not been officially released.
The loss is being felt deeply across the Vernal community. A sibling of one of the victims confirmed the identities in a comment, writing that both were LCSWs who worked in Vernal and that their loss is a huge one for the community.
A longtime friend of Rick’s described a 17-year friendship that included working together for a decade, attending graduate school together, and carpooling every Thursday evening. She also noted a second connection — her husband and Heather had been childhood friends, and she remembered Jackson’s first day of kindergarten.
“We are absolutely devastated,” she wrote.
Others who knew the family through work, counseling, and as neighbors shared their grief online. One person wrote that Rick had been their counselor for more than three years and that Rick and Heather happened to live behind them. Another said they worked with Heather and were heartbroken to learn she and her family were the victims.
A cousin of one of the victims also confirmed the loss. “This is my cousin and his family that were killed,” they wrote. “Rest easy, cousin.”
The crash remains under investigation by Utah Highway Patrol.
Community accounts courtesy of family and friends.
📸 Image(s) used under fair use for news reporting.
