(Campbell County, WY) – A three vehicle crash reported at 11:00 PM on October 19th, occurring on Swanson Road outside of Gillette, resulted in one fatality, according to a preliminary report filed by the Wyoming Highway Patrol (WHP) on October 22nd.
The deceased has been identified as 25-year-old Wyoming resident Jesse Mcmanis.
The report states that Mcmanis left the roadway on the east side of Swanson Road, but no tire tracks were visible at the time to determine the direct route of the vehicle, which may have also run through a large mud puddle on the south side of the road.
The vehicle then appeared to slide broadside into the front end of a parked school bus, based on damage to the driver’s side of the vehicle and the damage to the school bus, which was then pushed into the front end of another parked vehicle.
The driver’s side of the vehicle took most of the impact, the report continues, with the side curtain airbag being deployed.
Mcmanis was wearing his seatbelt at the time of the crash, but speed is being looked into as a possible contributing factor, with rain and blowing snow leading to wet road conditions as well.
To date, there have been 93 fatalities on Wyoming’s roadways in 2021, compared to 114 in 2020, 131 in 2019, and 96 in 2018.