Seatbelt use praised by sheriff
Courtesy photo This driver escaped with minimal injuries thanks to a seatbelt.
NAPLES — Around 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 1, an accident occurred on Highway 95 and Mountain Meadows Road in the area of the mudslide, where the speed is reduced during the reconstruction efforts.
According to Boundary County Sheriff Dave Kramer, an elderly man from Libby, Mont., did not see the speed reduction at Mountain Meadows Road.
Public Information Officer Michael Meier reports the car then lost control, struck the concrete retaining wall and then crossed over the center dividers, hitting a camp trailer that was traveling southbound from Alberta. The car then continued down off the roadway into the timber below.
According to Meier, the family from Alberta was not injured, and the driver of the car from Montana suffered only minor injuries. Seat belts and airbags helped prevent everyone from sustaining more severe injuries.
“Thankfully he was wearing his seatbelt,” said Kramer, of the driver who ended up going over the embankment into the trees, “or it would have been a different story.”
The Sheriff’s Office would like to remind everyone to please buckle up when driving, and use caution through the reduced speed area of the Mountain Meadows/Highway 95 slide area.