SODA SPRINGS, Idaho — A five-vehicle chain-reaction crash triggered by a dust storm injured three Wyoming residents and blocked a highway north of Soda Springs for several hours Wednesday afternoon, according to the Idaho State Police.
The pileup occurred at 4:44 p.m. on northbound State Highway 34. Traffic had temporarily halted near milepost 68 as three vehicles — a Dodge Dakota driven by a 28-year-old Pocatello man, an Acura driven by a 23-year-old Preston woman, and a Chevrolet Silverado driven by a 25-year-old Soda Springs man — waited for the severe weather to pass.
The collision sequence began when a 2024 Toyota Prius, driven by a 49-year-old man from Etna, Wyoming, attempted to bypass the stopped vehicles. As the Prius tried to reenter the northbound lane, it ended up blocking the southbound lane of traffic.
Simultaneously, a 2005 Dodge Ram driven by a 66-year-old Soda Springs man attempted to pass all the vehicles. The Ram sideswiped the stopped Silverado and slammed into the Prius, which then caused the Dakota to collide with the Acura.
The driver of the Prius and his two passengers, a 50-year-old woman and a 20-year-old man, were transported by ambulance to a local hospital. State police noted that one passenger in the Prius was the only occupant involved in the crash not wearing a seat belt.
The highway was blocked for approximately three hours. Local agencies, including the Caribou County Sheriff’s Office and Soda Springs Police Department, assisted state troopers at the scene.