Qn Saturday October 8, 2016, YCSO deputies were dispatched to the area around the Desoto Mine near Cleator, Arizona, regarding a fatal crash involving an off-highway vehicle. The 69-year-old driver of a Polaris Ranger, with a 4 seat side-by-side configuration, stated that he was driving up a hill with 3 passengers in the vehicle.
The passengers included a 39-year-old man in the right front seat, a 15-year-old male in the right rear seat, and a 66-year-old female in the left rear seat. All occupants are from the Glendale area and none were wearing seat belts or helmets. During the climb, the vehicle’s left side tires hit a rock, causing it to flip over, roll backwards, and eject all occupants. Family members of those injured were following in a separate vehicle and stopped immediately to render aid. The 66-year-old female was found unconscious nearby and CPR was started awaiting arrival of medical personnel. She was later pronounced dead at the scene. The remaining occupants all sustained serious injuries, none apparently life-threatening.
DPS Ranger arrived and was able to airlift the 15-year-old male and 39-year-old male to a staging area where they were transferred to medical helicopters and airlifted to Phoenix area hospitals. The driver’s location was more difficult to access requiring additional time for the DPS Ranger crew to facilitate a short haul removal. He was also eventually airlifted to a Phoenix hospital. The deceased woman’s body was released to the Medical Examiner.
There is no indication at this time that the driver was impaired.
The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office would like to remind everyone that it is vital to always wear seat belts/lap harnesses whenever riding in an off-highway situation.
The type of vehicle involved is designed to provide protection from such rollovers within the passenger compartment as long as the occupants remain inside and intact. A secondary safety measure, also very important in these environments, is the use of a helmet. Head injuries are some of the most commonly reported injuries in off-highway crashes.
On October 4, 2016, the Arizona Game and Fish Department released information regarding a death involving an 81-year-old man, not wearing a helmet, who was killed when his off highway vehicle rolled over in Mohave County. Click on this link for details – http://azgfd.net/artman/publish/NewsMedia/Fatal-ATV-rollover-a-reminder-to-practice-OHV-safety.shtml.