Car sliced in half during high-speed crash in Federal Heights

FEDERAL HEIGHTS, Colo. ( KDVR ) — Residents of a Federal Heights neighborhood are asking for help after a deadly crash over the weekend.

The single-car crash ended with the vehicle sliced in half.

Drivers are asking that something be done to stop what they say is out of control racing on a stretch of road. People who use West 92nd Avenue and North Tejon Street said speeding and crashes are a growing problem in the area. The area is largely residential, but 92nd Avenue is often used as a cross street connecting North Pecos Boulevard and Federal Boulevard.

Federal Heights police said the latest crash on Saturday involved a car that was traveling at a high rate of speed. Investigators said the driver lost control and hit two utility poles and a fence.

“I was sitting in my living room, and I heard a crash happen and went looking because there’s always wrecks right here,” said Kaedra Vandemark.

Vandemark lives across the street from where the crash happened.

“When we went looking for it, it was just complete devastation,” Vandemark said.

Drivers who use 92nd Avenue where the crash happened said serious crashes happen way too often because of speed. The posted speed limit is 35 mph.

“I drive up and down that street daily. I’ve noticed a lot of speeders and people almost getting hit,” driver Georgina Brown said.

Problem Solvers ask police, mayor for solutions

The Problem Solvers contacted both the city’s chief of police and the mayor’s office about the citizen’s concerns.

“The city (Federal Heights) has been in the process of adding some fixed ‘Red Light Cameras’ and ‘Speeding’ cameras in areas that have had high incidents of injury accidents and traffic safety concerns. This area of 92nd will be a top priority as these systems are deployed,” Federal Heights Police Chief Robert Grado said.

The mayor also responded, saying plans to slow traffic down have been in the works for some time.

“I can inform you that during its annual retreat, the (Federal Heights) city council discussed issues concerning excessive speeding and running red lights in the city. Staff has been diligently exploring various options for several months. Verra Mobility made a presentation to the city council during its meeting on July 2 and staff is now actively finalizing plans to install speed and red light cameras in the city,” Federal Heights Mayor Linda S. Montoya said.

FOX31 was told the area would include the intersection of 92nd and Tejon. Drivers said help is needed now.

“It’s just a bad street, there’s so many people that speed over the speed limit,” Brown said.

Some of the drivers FOX31 talked to said they would like to see officers monitor the traffic there. The Colorado State Patrol has been asked to help recreate what happened due to the severity and speed of the crash.

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