Two people were killed and seven others, including two Doug las County sheriff’s deputies, were injured when an SUV slammed into the back of a sheriff’s department vehicle that had pulled over another car on C-470 early Saturday.
A man in the front seat of a 1995 Honda Passport and a woman sitting on his lap were killed in the 2 a.m. accident near Broadway, said Master Trooper Ron Watkins of the Colorado State Patrol. Their names were not released.
Two people wearing red and white Santa Claus beanies were thrown from the Honda onto snow on the median, said Lupe Vargas, who was a passenger in the car that had been pulled over.
“It looked like they were just coming from a Christmas party,” Vargas said.
The driver of the Honda, Nathan Hummel, 27, of Littleton was taken to Swedish Medical Center with moderate injuries, Watkins said.
“(Investigators) strongly believe the driver was under the influence,” Watkins said.
A blood test will be taken to determine whether he had illegal levels of drugs or alcohol in his system, Watkins said. The results will come in about a week, he said.
Four passengers from Hummel’s car were in serious condition Saturday: John Huff, 23, of Duluth, Minn.; Jordan Vaughan, 23, of Colorado Springs; Bryan Williams, 22, of Lone Tree; and Shannon Zele, 23, of Littleton. All were taken to Swedish, Watkins said.
The two deputies, Jason Cirbo and Terrence Hoppe, were taken to a Littleton hospital with minor injuries, Watkins said. They were treated and released.
Miriam Madrid, 18, of Littleton said she was riding with two friends on their way home from Boulder when her friend was pulled over for weaving in traffic. Two Douglas County sheriff’s vehicles parked behind them on the left shoulder of the highway, she said. Both officers were in their vehicles at the time of the crash, Watkins said.
“We heard brakes screeching,” Madrid said. Then, “it sounded like an explosion.”
The Honda smashed into the first sheriff’s vehicle, a Chevrolet Tahoe, which was protruding about a foot into the right lane, and the SUV then struck a patrol car. The patrol car and the Honda spun around and collided with each other. The Honda came to rest facing the wrong direction on the highway, Madrid said.
Westbound C-470 was closed for approximately five hours because of the crash, Watkins said. The highway reopened shortly after 7 a.m., he said.
Staff writer Kirk Mitchell can be reached at 303-954-1206 or kmitchell@denverpost.com.
