U.S. Highway 160 was closed in both directions for about an hour Wednesday morning for a two-car crash near Mancos.
The crash occurred about 7:25 a.m. a few miles southwest of Mancos near County Road H. It involved a blue 2006 Subaru Outback and a 2016 Haundai rental car.
The drivers, 61-year-old Marjorie Connolly, of Mancos, and 53-year-old Andrea Shemesh of Chicago, did not appear to have serious injuries, and refused medical attention.
Shemesh was driving with her 21-year-old son Tamir Shemesh, who also was uninjured. Tow trucks arrived about 8:30 a.m. to take away the damaged vehicles. Reid said patrol troopers stayed on the scene to direct traffic while the road was closed.
Trooper Gary Smith said the collision occurred when Connolly was backing out of County Road H onto the highway. She reportedly said she didn’t see Shemesh’s vehicle, which was driving east on Highway 160, until the collision. Smith said that, based on interviews and the posted speed limit at that part of the highway, he believed Shemesh was driving about 55 mph when the right front of her vehicle collided with the left front of Connolly’s. Smith said it’s unusual to see a two-car crash at that speed without anyone getting hurt.
“It’s kind of unbelievable, actually,” Smith said. “Airbags were deployed in both vehicles, everyone was buckled up, and everybody walked away with no injuries.”
Montezuma County Sheriff’s deputies and Mancos Fire and Rescue workers also responded to the scene. Deputies helped the troopers direct traffic onto County Road H while the two vehicles were still blocking U.S. 160.
