Lance grumbled at the following article in this morning’s newspaper.  It's not so much that they mentioned Miller's but the way the article is composed it makes it seem like Elden's is only a tow company and not an auto collision repair shop as well.


Herald Journal February 24, 2012

So you drive off the road into the Logan River. Once you’re safely back on land, what about your car?

With all the vehicles taking the plunge lately at milepost 473, this is a question we suspect a lot of readers might have had, so we called a local towing company and auto-body repair shop to find out more.

Getting the car out of the river can range from a very easy job to a complex operation, according to Elden Dattage of Dattage Towing in Logan, who has pulled dozens of vehicles, including semi trailer rigs, out of rivers in the region. Because of the many variables, Dattage wouldn’t venture a price estimate for the job. “Every situation is so different,” he said.

And what about water damage to the car? That, too, can vary widely depending on how much of the vehicle becomes submerged.

“The biggest problem is water getting into the electronics,” said Jeff Miller of Miller Auto Body. “If the car is filled with water up to the dashboard level, in most cases it’s going to be totaled. It’s like throwing your cellphone in the toilet.”

Like Dattage, Miller has handled a lot of submerged vehicles over the years, including the Honda Accord righted by passing motorists in a dramatic rescue at milepost 473 on New Year’s Eve. That car took in a lot of water and was declared totaled by the driver’s insurance company.

No word whether Miller’s or Dattage’s employees have ever found a fish in any of these vehicles.

http://news.hjnews.com/content/tncms/live/

Another car falls into Logan River at notorious canyon location

updated: 17 hours ago By Amy Macavinta

A new warning sign and statewide publicity about a dangerous curve in Logan Canyon has apparently not slowed drivers, as another car had to be pulled out of Logan River on Tuesday afternoon near mile marker 473 on U.S. Highway 89. Neither of the two individuals in the vehicle were injured in the crash.

According to the Utah Highway Patrol, the driver of a blue Saturn was northbound on the Logan Canyon road at about 12:30 p.m. The driver entered the curve at mile post 473.5 and exited the road to the right onto the right shoulder.

Logan resident Colleen Larkin, 20, overcorrected to the left into oncoming traffic, then tried to steer back to the right and exited the road. The car left the road, sliding down toward the river, coming to rest with the front of the car in the water, according to UHP.

Larkin and her passenger, Alex Bernkopf, 20, also of Logan, were both wearing seatbelts.

Larkin was cited for driving too fast for existing conditions.

The UHP said this has been a hazardous curve for years. However, it first gained UDOT's attention after three children - two who had stopped breathing - were pulled from inside a car in the freezing river in a dramatic rescue on New Year's Eve.

Three weeks later, another truck left the roadway and in a matter of seconds landed in the river.

UDOT has confirmed plans to increase safety on this curve, but there is no specific plan or time frame involved.

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amacavinta@hjnews.com

Twitter: @amacavinta