Thanksgiving Day Crash Leaves 2 Wyomingites Dead, 2 Injured

Thanksgiving Day Crash Leaves 2 Wyomingites Dead, 2 Injured

Joy Greenwald, Townsquare Media

The Wyoming Highway Patrol says speed may be to blame for a Thanksgiving Day crash that left two Wyomingites dead and two others injured.

The crash happened around 7:45 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 23, near milepost 3 on U.S. 14A near Cody.

According to a fatality crash summary, 60-year-old Patty Braley was behind the wheel of a westbound Ford Expedition and was driving up a hill when she lost control on the ice- and snow-covered highway.

The Expedition began to spin counterclockwise, slid into the eastbound lane, and collided with an oncoming Ford F-150.

"The F-150 had severe damage to the front, and the Expedition had severe damage to the driver's side," the summary reads. "After the collision, the Expedition spun one-half times and came to a rest on the highway."

Braley and her passenger, 64-year-old Timothy Ward, were wearing their seat belts, but neither survived the crash.

The pickup driver and another passenger were also reportedly injured in the crash, but the patrol did not say to what extent.

Braley and Ward are the fifth and sixth people to die on Park County's highways so far this year.

2022's Deadliest Wyoming County by Traffic Deaths

While car crashes can occur anywhere, some roads in Wyoming are more dangerous than others.

According to Wyoming Highway Patrol data, there were 117 fatal crashes in the Cowboy State in 2022 resulting in 133 deaths.

Of those fatal crashes, the majority (13.68%) occurred in Laramie County -- two in January, one in February, one in March, two in April, one in June, two in July, three in August, two in September, one in November, and one in December.

Sweetwater County saw the second most fatal crashes last year, 12, while Fremont and Lincoln counties each saw 10.

Albany and Park counties each recorded eight, and Campbell, Converse, and Natrona counties each tallied seven.

The deadliest 2022 crash in Laramie County took place on June 17 when two semis collided on Interstate 80 east of Cheyenne and immediately became engulfed in flames killing both drivers and a passenger.



Laramie County also saw two fatal crashes involving motorcyclists, two fatal crashes involving juveniles, and a fatal crash involving a pedestrian last year.

Below is the Wyoming Highway Patrol narrative of every fatal crash that occurred in Laramie County in 2022.

Gallery Credit: Joy Greenwald

Road Fatalities: Most Dangerous Time, Day, and Month by State

Knowing what dangers are ahead is part of being a good driver. Georgia-based attorneys at Bader Scott gathered information from the National Highway Safety Transportation Administration (NHTSA) to determine the most fatal time, day, and month to be on the road in each of the 50 states.

Gallery Credit: Scott Clow

Filed Under: Wyoming, Snow, Cody, Wyoming Highway Patrol, Fatal Crash, Park County, Ice, WHP, Speed, U.S. 14A
Categories: News, Wyoming News