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Two injured in vehicle crashes

A Durango man and an Arizona woman were seriously injured in separate single-vehicle crashes – the man early Wednesday morning east of Elmore’s Corner, the woman late Tuesday on Mancos Hill west of Durango – Colorado State Patrol reported.

John Anthony Vigliano III, eastbound on U.S. Highway 160 about 9 a.m. Wednesday in a blue 2012 Mustang convertible, veered across the westbound lane of U.S. Highway 160 just east of Elmore’s Corner, and he crashed into a tree, said Capt. Adrian Driscoll, commander of the CSP office in Durango.

Vigliano was flown to Grand Junction in serious condition, Driscoll said. The accident is being investigated as a case of fatigue or a medical condition, he said.

Vigliano’s car caught fire, but passers-by stopped to use dry chemicals to control the fire long enough to pull him out, said Karola Hanks, Durango Fire Protection District fire marshal.

“They did a tremendous thing, and our hats are off to them,” Hanks said. “But they put themselves in extreme danger.”

Bumpers have pressurized shock absorbers which, under heat, can explode, sending projectiles flying, Hanks said. Also, batteries can release dangerous hydrogen vapor, she said.

“So, we say, ‘thanks for a wonderful job because they didn’t just drive by,” Hanks said. “But please exercise extreme caution.”

In the Tuesday accident, Elizabeth Levingston, 28, who was a passenger and was not wearing a seat belt, was ejected from the 1993 F-250. She was flown to San Juan Regional Medical Center in Farmington with serious injuries, Driscoll said.

She was in “fair” condition Wednesday afternoon, according to a spokesman at the hospital.

The accident occurred after 11:30 p.m. on U.S. Highway 160 on Mancos Hill, closing the highway for about a half hour, Driscoll said. The highway reopened just after midnight Wednesday.

The driver, Benjamin Hessling, 19, a Durango resident, suffered minor injuries.

Hessling was cited for careless driving resulting in bodily injury, Driscoll said.

daler@durangoherald.com



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