Crash in Flagstaff Claims Life

Flagstaff – A man lost his life in a morning crash involving a Flagstaff police vehicle on Saturday. This incident follows another fatality that occurred a few months ago, where a man riding a skateboard was killed after an encounter with an officer.

The Department of Public Safety (DPS) is looking into these recent deadly incidents, but details surrounding this latest crash remain scarce.

What is known is that the collision took place at the intersection of Butler Avenue and Sinagua Heights, involving police officers and another vehicle. While the officer was transported to a local hospital, the other driver was pronounced dead at the scene.

Back in June, a separate crash happened on Route 66 and Milton Road. According to Flagstaff police, a 22-year-old man was riding a single-wheeled electric skateboard just before midnight when an officer approached, leading to his injuries and subsequent death.

While such fatalities are not common today, they have occurred before. Earlier this month, two firefighters from Timber Mesa died in another collision.

According to the National Council on Safety, around 200 individuals were killed in accidents involving emergency vehicles in 2023. The breakdown shows that 57% were private drivers, 23% were pedestrians, and 18% were those operating emergency vehicles.

DPS has not commented on the recent incident, and Flagstaff police mentioned that they would provide more information later this week.

As for the June incident, Flagstaff PD is nearing the completion of that investigation and plans to share updates soon.