Accident April 16 2009 18 wheeler

Anyone have any info on an accident involving an 18 wheeler last night (april 16)in Carbon County? My aunt's boyfriend was driving an 18 wheeler and is in jail for careless operation or something of that nature. We hear that two children had to be air-lifted to the hospital. Anyone know any credible info?

Janet from Louisiana wrote:

Anyone have any info on an accident involving an 18 wheeler last night (april 16)in Carbon County? My aunt's boyfriend was driving an 18 wheeler and is in jail for careless operation or something of that nature. We hear that two children had to be air-lifted to the hospital. Anyone know any credible info?

that was my cousin and her husband died in that accident and the children are in critical condition. we are hoping that the children make it.

family member wrote:

<quoted text>that was my cousin and her husband died in that accident and the children are in critical condition. we are hoping that the children make it.

Thank you for the response. Can you tell me what happened? My aunt is not sure. I hope the kids are ok. I heard that the children are in the hospital in Denver. He is in jail, and will probably remain there for this accident. I don't know him really well, and have only met him once. I do know that he seems nice. My aunt is a good person and she is totally devastated.

I don't have any new info at this time, but the children are still in the same condition. you can go to rawlins daily times about the accident for more info.thank you for your concern.

All surviving members of our family from Reno are now in Denver. At the Children's hospital.
Latest info gathered is that the truck driver was going 70 in hazardous road conditions, jackknifed his truck, and the trailer impacted the driver's side of the car. The truck driver was uninjured. Our family lost a brother, husband, and father. My sister suffered minor wounds, thanks to the courage and love of her husband's sacrifice, shielding her from the crash. Her eldest has a broken pelvis, and hundreds or stiches on her head. Her youngest, who was mediflighted to Denver Childrens, suffered multiple skull fractures, and thank god, was taken off sedation last night and is responding well.
There are multiple charges against the truck driver, what they are, i don't know.
I know good people can make mistakes, but where there are obvious reason to err on the side of caution, rather than to travel recklessly into the unknown/ unseen/ unsafe. I feel this is a case of the latter.
We will miss you, Andrew.

I am so sorry for your loss. I know that Mr. Anton is grief stricken and very very sorry. He has been truly upset since the accident. I will pray for the children and I am hoping for healing for your family. If there is ever anything that I can do, please let me know. I cannot speak for Mr. Anton, but I know that he has conveyed to my aunt in Wyoming how truly sorry he is. I do thank you for the information. I found that the charges he is facing are agg homicide by vehicle, two counts of agg assault and battery (all felonies) as well as the misdemeanor counts of homicide by vehicle, driving too fast for conditions and reckless driving. Again, I am so so sorry for your loss and I cannot imagine what your family is facing now. God bless you and your loved ones. Thank you

I know Mr.Anton personally. i know he would Not malicously hurt anyone or anything....in these sad times it easy to get caught up in the grief and think the worse of the one that took your loved one. God bless you all in this time of sorrow. I feel it would be best to see what the police reports actually say on the speed he was traveling, in weather conditions its very easy to loose control no matter how fast or slow you are going. we need to keep in mind that he also stopped his rig to try and help the victims and was the one to call the police to the scene so medical attention could be rendered. he would never deliberatly hurt anyone and is also grief stricken with this and recieving counseling for the trauma as well, its not easy to live with the damage that is done for anyone involved. i think we all forget how easy our lives can change in a split second, we just don't know what our futures hold in store for us.
Once again I'am Deeply heart felt with your sorrow and saying prayers for all involved in this unwanted event. God Bless.

Brother at heart: My aunt says the same thing about Mr. Anton. I just didn't want to overstep my boundaries. My thoughts about him in the short time that I have known him are that he is a kind and generous and caring man. I am just not in a position to speak for him or about him. I believe my aunt and trust that he is that wonderful person that she loves. She told me how terribly sad and upset he is but I hesitated to share his personal struggles with this accident. And it was an accident. I am so sorry for everyone involved.

if arthur is so caring he should have slowed down this is not the first that he has killed by his being in a hurry look back 4 or so years ago he is in to big a hurry and should be taken to jail for this and the last one maybe than he will get what he deserves

the girls are still with us, thank our higher power. as to mr. anton i know that time is our living. my wife and i drove dedicated from st. louis to the bay area several times a week. i never seen so many TRUCKS over the bank or in the ditch as i have on int 80 in wyoming. is this an enigma or do we as truck drivers forget that we are hauling 40 tons of load? mile marker 234 said bad road conditions ahead!at 240 or so the accident happened.IIIIIFFFFFF u are a truck driver YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE. if u are not then get off the road!!!! i do feeel bad that mr anton is in this sitiuation but he made a choice. now he has to live with it..........the rest of his life. slow down and keep the shiney side up. the life u save may be your own!!!!!!

yes it was an accident, and accidents do happen even thou we wish they wouldn't. we live our lives trying to avoid them and all the other mishaps that can happen in our daily routines. we think accidents just happen to other people and never us. only the good Lord knows whats around the next corner for us and its always so easy to point fingers and push blame on others. i also feel you are responsible NO MATTER WHAT YOU DRIVE!on and off the roads. Until i see a copy of the Police report on here how do we know what has happenned? what are the correct details? who do we believe? since we are all Judge,Jury, and Executioner here and so willing to point blame, i guess none of us have ever lost control of anything, we all have been perfect and safe all our lives, i think not.
so who's going to cast the first stone? you all should be saying a Prayer for everyone involved and hoping for the best for everyone, guess that would be to logical on my part.
As before my sympathy goes out to the family members for there loss, God Bless

you can wait for your police report,then you can ask yourself 'what was he thinking?'.blowing snow/heavy slush and snow on the road...hmmmm..better slow this baby down and adjust...but he didnt. he was charged with excessive speed which resulted in the more serious charges.i dont care about the 'details' of his problems...i believe the police can get an accurate estimate of accident statistics. you dont charge someone the charges hes facing on a hunch.as for 'details' concerning this loss at the family level..you dont want to know.yes..as a family member i am saddened..as a truck driver i am flat out angry. i did notice you were not quick to comment on 'CONCERNED' comment on something mr. anton was involved with 4 years ago?perhaps you dont...perhaps you dont want to know.if 'concerned' would like to comment further i would like to know.

I too think that the answers are often found in court. Too often the police charge people with things and hope that some or most of it "sticks"... I was not there, but I do know that I have done many things while driving (eating, drinking, chatting, etc) that could have injured a person. I am thankful that I have the luxury of seeing it from someone else's perspective. I know that we are all human and we ALL,(yes, all) make mistakes. I daresay that if a person who has lost a loved one will take a look at their lives, they too have made mistakes. Now, I am not saying that Mr. Anton is perfect, but I do think that he deserves common human decency. I know that he has suffered and has suffered tremendously...

i believe with the weather conditions did they take the time to fully investigate the scene? and yes Wyoming is quick to charge unnecesary charges to someone, in wyoming you are guilty till proven innocent the police in this state are out for statistics and not the problem at hand. and the Miss concerned issue, i'm not here to get in a pissin match with a disgruntled/heartbroke person. i could elaborate on her complaint but is it really the problem here..NO i think not. the main issue is to get down to statistics and sort this tragedy out so everyone can start a healing process. no one is going to get anywhere pointing fingers and blame. and yes i do still want to see the police report not that they are in any way perfect to the T but it does help make sence of everything that has happened. as far as the driving conditions if it was me i would have pulled off the interstate to somewhere safer to clean what i needed to off my vehicle, there are plenty of pull offs and exits to do this i would not put myself or others in a unsafe conditon along a weather stricken stretch of highway, if it was that bad wydot should have closed the interstate down for everyones safety.
i don not reply to make anyone angry or upset we need to step back take a breather and gather our common sence and stop stoning people for every mistake that happens in our lives, sometimes we need to put ourselves in someone elses shoes to weigh things out..
maybe counciling would be a good idea for everyone involved to help with the grief and healing process?

There is no justification for how Mr. Anton was driving. Big Rig drivers need to exercise much more responsibility than drivers of small vehicles. That is why they are required to get a special liscense. Common sense should have dictated to Mr. Anton that driving a 50 ton vehicle 70 mph in blizzard conditions was a very bad idea. He lost sight of his responsibility, and now people are dead. If time is his living, then he needs to manage his time better. Go see the little girl who's head was almost crushed in this accident, look at the over 400 stitches and staples in her head, and ask her if a truck driver's convenience is more important than her life and the lives of her lost family. Big rig drivers rarely get hurt in accidents they cause, it is always the other guy, in the small car, that either dies or is maimed. Slow it down!

i just want to know was he in fact doing 70? we know this information to be true? why did WYDOT not close the highway if it was unsafe for travel?
they closed it over in cheyenne I-80 and I-25.
in todays hussle and bussle life everyone thinks they need to get somewhere in a hurry, everyone needs to slow it down no matter what your driving these days...i for a fact nearly got hit myself in town by cars! during this snow storm becuase they were traveling at an unsafe speed for conditions. i was not aware we were all safe good drivers and can handle everything mothernature throws at us and just shrug it off as oh well.
maybe after everyone starts to try to heal themselves from this tragedy we will start thinking more clearly and effectivly on the situation. i feel for everyones loss but people we need to open our eyes to the fact that things happen in our lives for some reason that only God knows why..

Mr. Anton probably does feel sadddened by the life lost and injuries caused, however, these little girls and my cousin have lost a solid stone in their lives. Have you ever ahd to tell your child that mommy or daddy wouldn't be thereto help them feel better? Besides losing a child, telling a child this is the greatest tragedy a person has to go through. With the given weather conditions, Mr. Anton SHOLD have SLOWED down!!! No questions. My grandfather drove trucks many years and NEVER had an accident because he took the proper precautions! Regarding pulling off to a "safer" location, most drivers would assume that the emergency lane was a safe location. It would have probably been more dangerous for the to try to drive further with icy wipers. FYI: Mr. Anton will be judged in court, by facts, not by our family.

Brother at Heart wrote:

i just want to know was he in fact doing 70? we know this information to be true? why did WYDOT not close the highway if it was unsafe for travel?
they closed it over in cheyenne I-80 and I-25.
in todays hussle and bussle life everyone thinks they need to get somewhere in a hurry, everyone needs to slow it down no matter what your driving these days...i for a fact nearly got hit myself in town by cars! during this snow storm becuase they were traveling at an unsafe speed for conditions. i was not aware we were all safe good drivers and can handle everything mothernature throws at us and just shrug it off as oh well.
maybe after everyone starts to try to heal themselves from this tragedy we will start thinking more clearly and effectivly on the situation. i feel for everyones loss but people we need to open our eyes to the fact that things happen in our lives for some reason that only God knows why..

I have to say that this is the worst situation that our family has been faced with in a long time. The loss of our brother and friend is more painful than anyone can imagine. As for the comments above I ask that Brother at Heart look into the information he is seeking. Police reports are public record. As someone who HAS seen the report I can tell you that he was in fact going 70 miles an hour, that the vehicle WAS IN FACT in the emergancy lane and that Mr. Anton's actions directly lead to the death of our beloved Andrew. I ask that you please try to show some respect for his wife and children and keep the "Wyoming is too had on criminals" bs to yourself. A charge such as he is facing is certainly appropriate. If it was cold enough to freeze slush to the windshield it is unnacceptable for any vehicle to be going that fast regardless of how large or small. He may be like a brother to you, and I understand your wanting to defend him; but what he did is wrong. He should feel remorse for his actions, and in my opinion, please rememeber that is what this is, he should be held accountable for them. I understand your heart goes out to him, but I find it hard to have any feelings other than anger for someone who has put some of the most important people in my life in the position they are now in.

In response to "concerned" I found a related article with an "Arthur 'Harry' Anton from 9-2005. Reading the article, I assume it was the one you referenced. It's crazy that he was still able to drive after suffering those injuries. Also, to "angry and sad" I totally agree. Brother at Heart needs to read the facts if he's going to continue to baby Mr. Anton. The weather situation was probably safe to drive in WITH PRECAUTIONS!!! NOT the normal speed limit in snowy conditions!

A Brother at Heart wrote:

I know Mr.Anton personally. i know he would Not malicously hurt anyone or anything....in these sad times it easy to get caught up in the grief and think the worse of the one that took your loved one. God bless you all in this time of sorrow. I feel it would be best to see what the police reports actually say on the speed he was traveling, in weather conditions its very easy to loose control no matter how fast or slow you are going. we need to keep in mind that he also stopped his rig to try and help the victims and was the one to call the police to the scene so medical attention could be rendered. he would never deliberatly hurt anyone and is also grief stricken with this and recieving counseling for the trauma as well, its not easy to live with the damage that is done for anyone involved. i think we all forget how easy our lives can change in a split second, we just don't know what our futures hold in store for us.
Once again I'am Deeply heart felt with your sorrow and saying prayers for all involved in this unwanted event. God Bless.

Just to set the record straight ANTON did not run to help!!! He never tried to help at all people were flagged don to help!!This I know as fact as Two wonderful ANGELS one named Ariel and her father stopped to help and called 911.many people stopped to help but ANTON was nowhere to be found! He as still in his truck when the whp arrived! I too have seen the police report andhe was in fact driving 70 and admitted it right away!! They were at a dead stop and HE had a full load in his trailor! No one has heard any remorse fromt the officers or jail staff.Unusual I say.NO HUMANESS as far as I am concerned.I am sorry if you think HE is suffering but he doessn't know suffering till you look into those suffering eyes of the little one who has nothing but emptiness in her and her Mothers eyes.theyoungest can't be told because she has such severe brain and head trauma.So maybe you should put yourself in their shoes !Oh thats right they have no shoes.Thank you Andrew for the ultimate sacrifice you gave to save your family.I know you are in Heaven sitting at the right hand of God for such an unconditional love you gave. these are facts .Get it right before you overstep yourself in your statements!!!!!Andrew will be terribly missed.