At least one person died early Sunday morning in a semitrailer crash that shut down westbound Interstate 70 in Summit County for roughly 12 hours, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.
The crash, which happened on the west side of the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel, happened just before 5:45 a.m. Sunday, according to a news release from the Colorado State Patrol.
Westbound I-70 reopened between exit 216 for Loveland Pass and exit 205 near Silverthorne just before 6 p.m., CDOT officials said.
The semitrailer went off the right side of the westbound highway, crashed and caught fire, state patrol officials said in the release.
Investigators said all people inside the semitrailer died in the crash. Troopers had not yet been able to verify the number of people killed Sunday because of the extensive damage and fire.
Additional information about the cause of the crash was not available on Sunday.
Anyone with information about the crash who has not spoken to investigators is asked to contact Colorado State Patrol dispatchers at 970-249-4392 and reference case VC250372.
Two suspects died in a crash early Saturday in San Leandro after reportedly leading California Highway Patrol officers in a highway chase that began in Castro Valley, officials said.
According to the CHP, a pair of officers also suffered major injuries when both their vehicle and the white Mercedes they were pursuing crashed into a noise barrier on a tight, winding exit road from I-238 that leads to East 14th Street.
The two officers were taken to a hospital with major injuries, though they were not life-threatening, the CHP said Saturday. A passenger in the Mercedes was also hospitalized with major injuries.
The pursuit on Saturday began at about 3:41 a.m. when CHP officers attempted a traffic stop of the Mercedes sedan on Interstate 580, near Eden Canyon Road in Castro Valley, authorities said.
The driver did not pull over, the CHP said, and the ensuing vehicle chase extended for several miles along I-580 and I-238. It ended when the Mercedes crashed off the highway exit, just before it could reach San Leandro’s city streets.
Authorities said the CHP vehicle similarly ran into the barrier as a result of the first crash, though the two vehicles did not collide.
Responders from the Alameda County Fire Department and county sheriff’s office arrived to the scene soon afterward. The case is under investigation, the CHP said. No identifying details of the deceased suspects had been released as of press time Saturday.
Saturday’s incident was the latest high-speed law enforcement chase in the East Bay to result in a deadly crash — a trend that has led to fierce public debates in nearby Oakland about when police should engage in pursuits.
Last month, a civilian body that oversees the Oakland police approved new policies that relaxed previous restrictions on when the city’s officers can initiate a high-speed chase.
The CHP is not bound by any local policies limiting pursuit speeds. The agency has regularly been deployed to the East Bay, a crime-reduction strategy championed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Denver police are investigating a fat hit-and-run crash on the east side of town that killed a pedestrian early Monday morning.
The department announced the incident on X shortly before 1 a.m., saying a pedestrian had been struck and killed in the area of East Colfax Avenue and Trenton Street in Denver.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene, and delays in the area were expected as an investigation was launched.
Pedestrian deaths in Denver have jumped more than 50% in 2025 compared to the same period last year, according to city transportation officials.
As of Tuesday, 25 pedestrians had been killed in crashes so far this year in Denver, according to the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure. By that date last year, 16 pedestrians had died.
“It is breaking our hearts because we have seen a dramatic increase in the number of fatal crashes with pedestrians in Denver and around the state,” Amy Ford, executive director of the city’s transportation department, said Wednesday.
Pedestrian deaths account for nearly half of all Denver road deaths reported this year, city officials said.
The additional crash fatalities included 17 people in cars, six motorcyclists, seven people on scooters and three bicyclists — a total of 58 victims.
Motorists and motorcyclists killed in Denver crashes dropped between 2024 and 2025, but the increase in pedestrian deaths caused overall traffic fatalities to rise slightly, according to data provided by city officials.
Denver’s 16 pedestrian deaths during the first nine months of 2024 appear to be lower than the average over the past four years. City transportation data shows 24 pedestrians died in 2023, followed by 22 in 2022.
City officials are working to reduce fatal crashes in several different ways, Ford said.
Transportation staff started a speed-reduction program along Federal Boulevard and Alameda Avenue, which includes changing the timing of stoplights and adding radar speed signs that show drivers how fast they’re going.
On York Street, transportation crews reconfigured lanes between 18th and 40th avenues to add left turn lanes and reduce crashes, and new center medians on West Colfax and Hampden avenues make a shorter distance for pedestrians to cross the street, Ford said.
Vulnerable road user deaths have also spiked significantly across Colorado in the past 10 years, according to the Colorado State Patrol. Pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities in Colorado increased 78% between 2015 and 2024, while passenger vehicle deaths increased 7% during that same timeframe.
Last year was the second-deadliest year on record for pedestrians and bicyclists in Colorado, with 134 fatalities, state patrol officials said.
And October 2024 was the deadliest month on record for pedestrians, Colorado Department of Transportation chief of staff Sally Chafee said.
Part of that is because it’s getting darker earlier as the season changes, she said.
“Our Colorado lifestyle doesn’t stop because the sun sets earlier,” Chafee said. “People are still out walking, running and cycling, but in the dusk and darkness they’re incredibly difficult to see.”
Chafee urged drivers to always expect pedestrians to be present and for pedestrians and cyclists to wear bright, reflective clothing and pay attention to their surroundings
So far in 2025, crashes have killed 94 pedestrians and bicyclists across the state, according to CDOT’s fatal crash data portal. Those include four people who were struck and killed on highway shoulders in Denver this year after getting out of their vehicles because of car trouble.
Drivers should never get out of their vehicles on the shoulder and instead call a tow truck or roadside assistance and wait inside, Chafee said.
If someone must get out of their car, they should move to the other side of the guardrail and as far away from the roadway as possible, she said.
The family of Krysta Tsukahara, one of three victims in a fatal Piedmont Tesla Cybertruck crash last November, filed a lawsuit against Tesla in an Alameda County court on Thursday, alleging the vehicle’s design failed to provide a manual door to allow their daughter to escape the vehicle.
The filing represents an escalation in the family’s pursuit of legal remedies connected to the death of their daughter in late November 2024, taking aim at the Cybertruck automaker which has come under scrutiny for eight recalls since 2024 and ongoing concerns about battery combustion.
“Her death was preventable. She was alive after the crash. She called out for help. And she couldn’t get out. We are filing this lawsuit not just for accountability, but because there are other families out there who may never know the risks until it’s too late,” Krysta’s parents, Carl and Noelle Tsukahara, said in a statement.
Krysta Tsukahara, 19, died from smoke inhalation and burns suffered in a fatal car crash on Nov. 27, 2024, in Piedmont. Her family is suing the owner of the vehicle, Charles Patterson, and the family of the driver, Soren Dixon. Courtesy of the Tsukahara family
The Tsukaharas’ lawsuit alleges Tesla had ignored concerns from customers, bystanders and first responders about the company’s reliance on electronic doors for its vehicles, according to the complaint. The lawsuit further states that Tesla was aware of the threats its electronic doors posed to vehicle occupants, according to the lawsuit, but continued to “design, market and sell” vehicles with this feature.
“Consumers lodged dozens of complaints with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), many warning that rear-seat passengers — especially children — could be trapped inside during a crash or a fire,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit calls out Tesla founder Elon Musk for being personally aware of the problems with Tesla vehicles’ doors. At a 2013 earnings call, Musk acknowledged these issues, saying that “occasionally the sensor would malfunction … so you’d pull on the door handle and it wouldn’t open.” Musk assured investors that the design flaw had been fixed, even as failures continued to happen for years, with the lawsuit citing more than 30 examples of customers’ complaints about Tesla vehicles’ doors refusing to open.
On Nov. 27, 2024, Krysta Tsukahara, after returning home for Thanksgiving break from Savannah College of Arts and Design, attended a party with other graduates of Piedmont High School. The party, held at a private residence, included alcohol consumption by minors.
Around 3 a.m., Soren Dixon, 19, convinced Tsukahara and a handful of other partygoers to go to his home at 6861 Estates Dr. to pick up a Cybertruck that was owned by his grandfather, according to court documents. Dixon drove the Cybertruck with Jack Nelson, 20, Jordan Miller, 19, and Tsukahara as his passengers as they drove along Hampton Avenue toward another Piedmont residence, according to authorities.
Dixon had consumed approximately eight alcoholic beverages that evening, according to an unidentified witness in a California Highway Patrol report. Dixon’s autopsy also confirmed the presence of 180 nanograms of cocaine and 55 nanograms of methamphetamine per milliliter of blood at the time of the crash.
Just blocks away from their destination, Dixon accelerated out of a stop sign, crashed into a tree and struck a retaining wall. Another Piedmont High graduate, Matt Riordan, had followed in a vehicle behind the Cybertruck when he came upon the wreck as flames began to consume the vehicle. Riordan used a tree branch to break the passenger door window, where he pulled Jordan Miller from the vehicle. He returned moments later to save Krysta, Nelson and Dixon.
“I could hear Krysta yelling and the car saying ‘crash detected,’ ” Riordan told authorities, according to court documents. “I went back to the broken window and yelled for them to try to get out at this window. … Krysta tried to come up, sticking her head (out) from the back, I grabbed her arm to try and pull her towards me, but she retreated because of the fire.”
In April, the Tsukaharas filed a lawsuit against Dixon’s family, claiming they had been barred from accessing the vehicle and kept in the dark by the other families affected by the crash. The Tsukaharas alleged that Dixon “negligently and carelessly drove” the vehicle, causing their daughter’s death.
The Tsukaharas’ latest lawsuit blames Tesla, too, claiming its “negligent” door design caused the sudden and tragic death of their daughter.
“Krysta was a bright light in our lives — an honors student, a creative soul, and a beloved daughter,” Carl and Noelle Tsukahara said in a statement. “We never want this to happen to anyone else.”
One person died and three were injured, including a 5-year-old child, during a head-on crash in Adams County on Tuesday, according to the State Patrol.
State troopers responded about 9 p.m. Tuesday to a three-vehicle crash near East 120th Avenue and Sable Boulevard, according to a news release from the agency.
A GMC Sierra pickup was driving west on 120th when it struck the rear of a Ford Escape SUV and collided with an eastbound Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV, State Patrol officials said.
The truck driver, an unidentified 48-year-old man, died at the scene of the crash, according to the news release. He will be identified by the county coroner’s office.
Paramedics took a 5-year-old boy, who was a passenger in the truck, to the hospital with minor injuries, State Patrol officials said.
The 48-year-old man driving the Jeep and his 44-year-old female passenger were taken to the hospital with moderate injuries, according to the agency. The 24-year-old woman driving the Ford escaped the crash uninjured.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation, according to the State Patrol.
A single-engine plane carrying three people crash-landed early Wednesday on a road in Colorado Springs, according to law enforcement.
The pilot made an emergency landing on Powers Boulevard near Barnes Road, where the plane was leaking fuel, according to a 4:38 a.m. post from the Colorado Springs Fire Department. It’s unknown what forced the pilot to land.
None of the three people on board the plane was injured, according to fire officials. Photos posted by the fire department show damage to the plane’s wings and tail.
Two lanes of southbound Powers Boulevard were closed Wednesday morning for the cleanup and investigation, according to the Colorado Springs Police Department.
The Federal Aviation Administration was responding to investigate the crash, fire officials said.
Two people were killed in separate crashes in metro Denver overnight, including a cyclist in Boulder County, police officials said.
The Boulder County cyclist was killed in a crash at 7:41 p.m. Friday near U.S. 287 and County Road 4, the State Patrol said in a news release.
The crash involved a 50-year-old man driving a 2006 Honda SUV. The cyclist, who was in his mid-20s, was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators are still looking into what caused the crash, which closed southbound U.S. 287 on Friday night, the State Patrol said.
Several hours later, Denver police responded to a fatal hit-and-run crash after a driver hit a pedestrian near 26th Avenue and Federal Boulevard, the agency said on social media at 10:29 p.m.
The Denver Police Department initially reported the crash involved a motorcycle rider, but clarified on Saturday afternoon that the victim was a pedestrian.
The crash closed Federal Boulevard in both directions. Anyone with information about the suspect or their vehicle can contact Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867.
A box truck caught fire Monday evening as it was exiting Interstate 70 on the ramp to eastbound C-470, forcing closures of two highway ramps near Golden and causing headaches for rush-hour commuters.
The Clear Creek Sheriff’s Office reported at 5:15 p.m. that the driver of the box truck managed to escape the vehicle.
Happening Now 9/22 at 5:15 pm: Box truck fire on I-70 East off ramp to C470 East near Golden. The ramp from I-70 E to C470 E is currently closed. Driver was able to get out of the vehicle. pic.twitter.com/saHHVjOFrn
Authorities closed the I-70 east ramp to C-470 and U.S. 6 at exit 260. Traffic is required to stay on I-70 east or take exit 259 south to Morrison to get to eastbound C-470 or north to get to State Highway 6.
A pedestrian died Saturday night in a crash near Sloan’s Lake, Denver police said.
The Denver Police Department first posted about the fatal crash near West 17th Avenue and Sheridan Boulevard at 10:46 p.m. Saturday.
That intersection is on the southwest edge of Sloan’s Lake Park.
The pedestrian, who has not been publicly identified, died at the scene, police said. The unidentified driver stayed on scene after the crash.
Sheridan was closed in both directions at 17th for several hours during the crash cleanup and investigation, police said. It had fully reopened Sunday morning, according to an 8:18 a.m. update from the department.
The pedestrian will be identified by the Denver Office of the Medical Examiner at a later date.
Information about the cause of the crash was not available Sunday morning.
Denver police are searching for the driver and car involved in an August hit-and-run that seriously injured a bicyclist, according to the department.
An unidentified driver hit a bicyclist after running a stop sign at about 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 25, near W. 50th Avenue and Vallejo Street, according to a news release from the Denver Police Department.
That intersection is in north Denver’s Chaffee Park neighborhood.
Police said the suspect was driving a Mercedes-Benz SUV south on Vallejo when they hit the victim biking west on 50th. The driver then fled the scene.
Anyone with information on the hit-and-run is asked to contact Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867. Tipsters can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a cash reward.
A woman died and an infant was injured when a Mercedes SUV driven by the woman collided head-on with an RTD bus Thursday evening in Aurora.
Police responded to the crash at 5:18 p.m. at East 30th Avenue and East Parklane Drive. The woman and the infant, who wasn’t restrained, were thrown from the vehicle. Both were taken to the hospital.
Police said the woman died shortly after arriving at the hospital. The infant remains hospitalized with serious injuries.
Their names weren’t released.
Several passengers on the RTD bus were checked for injuries. One passenger and the bus driver were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Police are looking at speed and possible intoxication as possible factors involved in the crash.
One person died and four others were injured in hit-and-run crashes across Denver between Saturday and Monday, according to the police department.
A bicyclist was hit in the 4800 block of West 14th Avenue, near Yates Street, at about 1:34 a.m. Saturday. Police announced Monday that the unidentified victim had died at the hospital.
Investigators are searching for a larger, dark-colored sport utility vehicle, according to a crime alert. The vehicle may have damage to the front bumper and undercarriage.
That crash happened near the intersection of 18th Street and Welton Street, and a Nissan Murano SUV was spotted fleeing the scene, according to a crime alert.
No hit-and-run crashes were reported Sunday, but two more people were injured on Labor Day in Denver.
A bicyclist was injured in a hit-and-run near 40th and Walnut streets Monday evening, according to a 7:26 p.m. post from the Denver Police Department. Paramedics took the bicyclist to the hospital with serious injuries.
Another person was injured earlier that morning in a hit-and-run that temporarily shut down northbound Federal Boulevard at Sixth Avenue, police said at 5:04 a.m. Monday.
Police said the unknown driver fled the scene on foot after hitting an unidentified motorist, but it’s unclear if the driver was found or arrested.
Anyone with information on any of the hit-and-run crashes is asked to contact Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at 720-913-7867. Tipsters can remain anonymous.
Arapahoe sheriff deputies, South Metro firefighters and Colorado State Patrol investigate an injury accident on South Parker Road north of South Chambers Road on Sept. 1, 2025. (Provided by Arapahoe Sheriff Department)
A motorist driving a BMW at speeds in excess of 100 mph lost control of the vehicle Monday on South Parker Road just and ended up wheels pointed skyward between two horse trailers, the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office said.
Authorities said the driver and a passenger were seriously injured in the crash, which occurred shortly before 2 p.m. just southeast of the Cherry Creek Reservoir.
Witnesses told authorities that the driver of the BMW was speeding southbound on South Parker Road just north of South Chambers Road when the sedan left the roadway, crashed through a fence and landed upside down between the trailers. The driver and passenger were taken to a hospital.
Westbound Interstate 70 ropened Monday morning near Frisco after a crash, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.
The westbound interstate was closed between Exit 203 for Colorado 9 and East Frisco and Exit 201 for Frisco, about 3 miles west of Silverthorne, CDOT officials said in an 11:18 a.m. post on X.
A screenshot of Michael Gardner’s Instagram account.
A Colorado mountain climber fell to his death while descending the Jannu East peak in Nepal this month, during a third attempt at establishing a route on the peak’s north face.
A tribute to Michael Gardner published by the American Alpine Club said the 32-year-old was widely respected among his fellow alpinists for his “empathy, enthusiasm, dedication to the craft of climbing, pure motivations and lack of ego.”
“His quiet pursuit of the mountains on his own terms means his legacy is not flashy but found in traces and in the background — he was climbing and skiing for the sake of the craft, not for recognition,” the organization wrote.
Gardner was born in Ridgway and spent his childhood shadowing his father, George, on climbing expeditions around the world, according to Arc’teryx, an outdoor clothing brand that sponsored Gardner and announced his death on social media Oct. 8.
The company’s post described Gardner as a consummate outdoorsman and athlete who enjoyed skateboarding and skiing in addition to his lifelong passion of mountain climbing.
On Oct. 7, Gardner and Hennessey were attempting the north face of Jannu East, also known as Kumbhakarna East, when Gardner fell during their descent. Hennessey returned from the climb.
Gardner’s surviving family includes his mother, Colleen, and sister, Megan, according to Climbing Magazine. The magazine said the October climb marked Gardner and Hennessey’s fourth time visiting Jannu East and was their third try at the north face.
Three people were killed after the driver of a Jeep Grand Cherokee hit two Colorado Department of Transportation employees working outside their vehicle on U.S. 6 near Palisade.
Colorado State Patrol troopers responded to a fatal crash on westbound U.S. 6 between Palisade and Clifton in Mesa County around 10:42 a.m. Wednesday, agency officials said in a news release.
Investigators determined the driver of the Jeep Grand Cherokee struck two CDOT workers who were working outside of their vehicle and then hit a parked CDOT vehicle, causing the Jeep to roll.
The CDOT vehicle was parked off the right side of the road, CSP officials said.
One person in the Jeep was taken to the hospital and a second person in the Jeep died at the scene. Both CDOT workers died at the scene.
Troopers are still investigating the cause of the crash, according to the agency.
One person died and another was injured in a Thursday morning, single-vehicle crash in Denver’s Windsor neighborhood.
Officers responded to reports of a crash near South Clinton Street and East Alameda Avenue early Thursday morning, according to a 12:36 a.m. statement from the Denver Police Department.
The intersection is just north of the Windsor Gardens Community Center and northeast of Windsor Lake.
One car was involved in the crash, but paramedics took two people to the hospital with serious injuries, police said. Police did not specify if the second person involved in the crash was a passenger or a pedestrian.
A fatal crash in Denver’s Marston neighborhood left one person dead and sent another to the hospital, police said Wednesday night.
Denver officers are investigating the fatal crash — which happened near the intersection of West Belleview Avenue and South Dudley Street, just west of South Wadsworth Way and Marston Lake — the police department said in a 9:25 p.m. statement Wednesday.
After the motorcycle and car collided, paramedics pronounced the motorcyclist dead at the scene and took one passenger from the car to the hospital, police said. The passenger’s injuries are unknown at this time.
No information on what caused the crash was available Thursday morning.
The intersection was closed for multiple hours Wednesday night for the crash investigation.
