Passenger car flips, injuring two

Passenger car flips, injuring two

November 22, 2001

AN UNIDENTIFIED law-enforcement officer eyes the wreckage of a passenger vehicle that crashed after trying to pass a gravel truck near Dolores Tuesday morning.

Journal Staff Report

A woman trying to pass a gravel truck Tuesday on Highway 145 near Dolores ended up crashing her vehicle and injuring herself and her passenger, law-enforcement officials reported.

Kathy and Victor Hecht, both of Montrose, had to be transported to Southwest Memorial Hospital after their car went off the road and flipped over, blocking both lanes of traffic for a half-hour.

Extrication was required to remove the driver and passenger from the badly damaged vehicle, according to officials.

According to hospital spokesperson Jenis Tucker, Kathy Hecht, 67, suffered head, back and hand injuries. She was listed in good condition Wednesday morning at the hospital. Victor Hecht, 72, was treated and released with minor injuries.

Officers at the scene said the southbound gravel truck was initiating a slow left-hand turn just as Hecht decided to try and pass outside Dolores town limits. The two vehicles did not collide, but Hecht slammed into a ditch and then went airborne.

The crash is being investigated.