The Nevada Highway Patrol reports a Washoe Valley teen was gravely injured in a vehicle rollover accident in Pleasant Valley.
As of Wednesday morning, Heather Brown, 17, is on an artificial life-support system at Renown Regional Medical Center as result of the extensive injuries she suffered in Tuesday's accident, said NHP Trooper Chuck Allen.
At 3:57 p.m., NHP troopers were dispatched to the single-vehicle rollover accident on US 395 Alternate (US395A) near Ames Lane in Pleasant Valley. The Washoe Valley teen was driving a gold 2003 Dodge 4-door sedan south on the four-lane highway where the posted speed limit is 50 miles per hour.
For reasons still being investigated, Heather abruptly steered her vehicle to the left causing the sedan to travel across the center turn lane and both northbound travel lanes before departing the east side of the highway, said Trooper Allen in a news release.
After leaving the roadway edge, her vehicle struck a tree and rolled over through a section of right-of-way fence before coming to rest on its roof. She sustained life-threatening injuries in the crash and was transported to Renown Regional Medical Center by REMSA personnel.
The accident caused the temporary closure of both northbound lanes for nearly five hours where emergency vehicles were staged so that troopers could capture the roadway evidence and complete their on-scene portion of the investigation. Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) and deputies from the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office assisted our agency with traffic control duties by guiding motorists around the crash scene area.
The Nevada Highway Patrol’s Major Accident Investigation Team (MAIT) is investigating this tragic event. Witnesses to the crash are encouraged to contact Trooper Doug Hildebrand at (775) 689-4623 or dhildebrand@dps.state.nv.us regarding case number NHP-130423030.