GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KKCO) — A head-on collision on Interstate 70 near Rabbit Valley Monday left one woman dead and six others hospitalized.
Briana Brink, 32, of Colorado Springs, died at the scene due to injuries sustained in the crash, confirmed by the Mesa County Coroner’s Office.
According to the Colorado State Patrol, Brink’s Subaru Outback was traveling east in the westbound lanes when it collided with a Ford F-150 carrying six occupants. The impact caused Brink’s vehicle to roll down an embankment and catch fire, while the F-150 spun out and came to a stop in the westbound lanes.
The F-150’s driver, a 40-year-old man, along with five passengers—a 32-year-old woman, a 13-year-old, a 10-year-old girl, and two others of unknown ages—were taken to the hospital with serious injuries. All six were reported to be from Thornton, Colorado.
The crash prompted a closure of I-70 for nearly five hours, from 11:41 a.m. until 4:37 p.m. The Colorado State Patrol’s Vehicular Crimes Unit is investigating the collision and requests anyone with information to contact CSP dispatch, referencing case number VC260239.