Weekends tend to be a sweet spot for an increase in crashes on Arizona’s roadways. The morning and afternoon of Sunday, April 7th, saw several fatal crashes which have left seven people dead.
AZ Family reports that at approximately 9:00 a.m. the first crash involved a Phoenix Fire Department fire truck and a pickup at the intersection of 29th Avenue and Bethany Home Road. Three people lost their lives in the rollover crash, including a six-month-old infant.
Based off of eyewitness accounts, investigators from the Phoenix Police Department believe that the driver of the pickup truck may have attempted to turn in front of the emergency vehicle while it was responding to a fire call.
Three firefighters were injured and taken to an area hospital for treatment. One of the firefighters was released on Sunday afternoon while the two other members of the emergency crew were kept overnight for observation.
An additional deadly crash happened when a biker lost control of his motorcycle near the westbound Loop 101 near Union Hills. Traffic in the area had to be re-routed, but the roadway was opened sometime later Sunday afternoon. So far, authorities have not released any further details regarding the fatal motorcycle crash.
Later that same night, another motorcyclist was killed on Carefree Highway near 27th Avenue. Police said that the motorcyclist died at the scene and had not been wearing a helmet at the time.
Yet another person was killed in a 3-vehicle crash near Scottsdale that same afternoon at around 2:00 p.m. Scottsdale Police reported that this fatal crash involved a motorcycle, a ride-sharing vehicle, and another car.
Investigators believe that one vehicle wandered off the road into some roadside landscaping. The driver overcorrected and went into the path of the ride-sharing vehicle. The rideshare car was in turn pushed into the path of another oncoming vehicle.
