WICKENBURG, AZ — A deadly crash shut down a portion of U.S. 93 near Wickenburg Thursday morning.
According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety, the crash occurred just north of Wickenburg, near milepost 179.
DPS says a Honda passenger van was traveling northbound when it veered across the center line into the southbound lanes of traffic. The van collided with a semi-truck that was headed in the opposite direction.
The van driver, the only person in the vehicle, was killed in the crash.
The driver of the commercial semi-truck was taken to the hospital for observation but was not seriously hurt.
Southbound U.S. 93 was closed at I-40 and officials are directing northbound traffic along the SR 89 through Prescott.
UPDATE: Southbound US 93 is now closed at I-40 due to the crash at milepost 179. Northbound can use SR 89 to through Prescott. #aztraffic pic.twitter.com/A6UlIMfBhS
— Arizona DOT (@ArizonaDOT) May 20, 2021
It's not yet known what caused the collision.
INVESTIGATION INTO CRASHES ALONG STRETCH OF U.S. 93
This stretch of road is proving to be more dangerous as more crashes -- and deaths -- are being reported in the area, which is the primary route for drivers between Phoenix and Las Vegas. ABC15 looked at the area from milepost 199, where US 93 splits from US 60 in Wickenburg to mile marker 120, which is just north of Wikieup.
The ABC15 Investigators obtained vehicle crash data from the Arizona Department of Transportation from 2015 to 2019, as well as preliminary 2020 fatality crash information from the Arizona Department of Public Safety, to perform this analysis.
Most of the fatal crashes in 2020 were on the 34 miles of two-lane highway between Wickenburg and Wikieup. The two-lane sections are shown on the map below.
Thirty-five people have died along this portion of US 93 from 2015 to 2020.
Click here to view more interactive maps and learn more about this investigation.
