San Tan Valley teenager dies in dune buggy crash near Forest Lakes

Two brothers in off road vehicle hit tree - 17-year-old is killed, 19-year-old flown to Scottsdale Osborne Trauma Center

Flagstaff AZ- On Tuesday July 19,  the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office became aware of a single vehicle two occupant collision on Forest Service Road 181 approximately two miles off the Young Road which is located west of Forest Lakes. The initial 911 caller reported that two juveniles were trapped in an of-road vehicle that had collided with a tree.

A Coconino County Sheriff's deputy, Navajo County Sheriff's deputies, the Forest Lakes Fire District, the Heber Overgaard Fire District, and an air evacuation helicopter were dispatched to the scene.

Both occupants were trapped inside the vehicle and first responders were forced to cut the top off and extricate both victims. The seventeen year old passenger was transported to a safe landing area by a ground ambulance. Prior to the victim’s transport by helicopter, medical personnel pronounced him deceased. The victim’s nineteen year old brother, who was the driver of a small commercially produced dune buggy, was flown to the Scottsdale Osborne Level One Trauma Center.

During the investigation the deputy learned that the victim, his brother, and other family members, who are from San Tan Valley, Arizona, were camping in the area and participating in off-road recreation. The two young men left their campsite with the purpose of taking the dune buggy for a test drive. When they did not return to camp, their father went to look for them. He located his two sons trapped inside the vehicle. 

Investigators believe the driver lost control of the vehicle and drove head on into a large tree. Deputies and detectives are continuing this investigation.

Editor's note: Neither the victim, nor the family members were identified in the press release provided by the Coconino County Sheriff's Office.