A passenger in a fatal all-terrain vehicle crash north of Silverton remained in critical condition Thursday, and her husband, the driver, was listed in serious condition.
A spokeswoman at St. Anthony’s Hospital in Denver confirmed the conditions of Gary Adkinson, 53, and LaNita Adkinson, 51, of Garrison, Texas.
According to the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office, Gary Adkinson was operating an ATV with his wife, their son, Bryson, and son-in-law, Ryan King, in the San Juan Mountains north of Silverton on Tuesday.
An initial investigation showed the ATV experienced transmission troubles, and Adkinson attempted to coast down Corkscrew Pass.
The brakes failed near County Road 110, and the vehicle, picking up speed, went 75 feet off the road and down an embankment into Cement Creek.
The husband and wife were flown to Mercy Regional Medical Center and then transferred to St. Anthony’s. Bryson Adkinson, 26, and King, 35, of Nacogdoches, Texas, were pronounced dead at the scene. According to the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office, the family from eastern Texas was on vacation in Silverton.
The wives of Bryson Adkinson and King and three small children were at a campsite at the time of the crash. KLTV Channel 7 in Tyler, Texas, reported King was a pastor at Holly Springs Baptist Church. The family had arrived in Colorado the previous Saturday with plans to return home this week.
In his weekly blotter in the Silverton Standard & the Miner, San Juan County Sheriff Bruce Conrad said the “brutal” incident highlighted an increase of ATV accidents in the treacherous backcountry terrain around Silverton.
“Far too many people are taking far too many risks in these mountains lately,” Conrad wrote.
“Respecting them is not an option, it’s a necessity.”
Conrad did not respond to calls for comment.
