MOSCOW - Idaho State Police are saying alcohol was "definitely a factor" in the accident that killed two University of Idaho students and injured four others.
Without disclosing details, senior ISP Trooper Jeffory Talbott said Monday evidence at the scene and statements from survivors and witnesses led him to conclude alcohol was the primary factor that contributed to the crash.
Driver Wyatt T. Smith, 17, of St. Anthony, and passenger Benson J. Sternberg, 18, of New Plymouth, were killed in the one-vehicle crash at 3:45 a.m. Saturday.
Talbott said blood toxicology tests have been ordered for Smith, but results are not expected for four to six weeks.
Passengers Clinton H. Johnson, 19, of Clarkston, Zachary U. Blank, 19, of Idaho Falls, Stephani M. Brede, 18, of St. Maries, and Tiffany I. Arreola, 19, of New Plymouth, were treated and released at Gritman Medical Center in Moscow.
Talbott said the teens were at a party in the woods before the accident.
According to ISP, Smith was driving a 1997 GMC pickup southbound on Randall Flat Road when he lost control. The vehicle went left of center, hit the northbound embankment and rolled once, according to a crash report. None of the occupants was wearing seat belts.
Talbott said the paved road was slick at the time of the accident, and could have contributed to Smith losing control.
UI spokeswoman Tania Thompson said no plans for campus memorials have been finalized. Smith's funeral will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the LDS Stake Center in St. Anthony. Plans for Sternberg's funeral have not been announced.
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Mills may be contacted at jmills@lmtribune.com or (208) 883-0564.
