Utah road debris is often deadly

The freak accident that critically injured Brenda Shaw when she was impaled in the face by a flying piece of pipe that burst through her windshield is out of the ordinary, but unfortunate episodes like these are not unknown on Utah roads.

Shaw, 36, was struck in the face by an 8-foot steel pipe measuring three-quarters of an inch in diameter as she was driving on I-15 near Layton on Monday. Police said the car in front of Shaw ran over the pipe, which was on the road, causing it to pop up and blast through the windshield of her car.

The pipe ran through her cheek and came out on the left side of her neck. Despite her injuries, Shaw was able to pull over to the side of the road. Another driver stopped and called for help.

Utah Highway Patrol troopers said the pipe entered Shaw's face under her eye to the left of her nose.

Shaw remained in critical but stable condition Friday in the intensive care unit at LDS Hospital.

In recent years, other drivers have been badly injured or killed, either as result of debris in the road or other problems.

• Fruit Heights resident Kimball Herrod, 34, died in 2005 on I-15 near Woods Cross when a dual tire from a semi fell off, bounced across the median into oncoming traffic and slammed into Herrod's minivan.

Herrod's minivan swerved into another lane and hit another vehicle, but the driver in that car was not hurt.

However, Herrod's wife and four children, who were ages 1 through 7 at the time, were injured in the accident.

Herrod, who was wearing a seat belt, had to be extricated from the minivan. He was flown by medical helicopter to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

• Norma Killpack, 60, of Riverton, was killed in 2002 in a freak accident on I-15 near Lehi when the axle on a truck broke off and flew into the lane where Killpack was driving. Her truck turned over after being hit by the axle, and Killpack, who was wearing a seat belt, suffered severe head injuries. She died at the scene.

• Fayette resident Maryetta Elizabeth Dorius, 38, was killed in 2000 in an accident on State Road 28 near Gunnison when a chunk of rock salt fell off a truck going the opposite direction, bounced off the hood of Dorius' car and hit her in the head. The rock continued flying through the car, missing her four children who were ages 2 to 17 at the time, and smashed out the back window. Dorius was dead at the scene.