All of a sudden, Ava was upside-down. 

But thankfully, what could have ended in tragedy, did not. 

After hanging out with some friends in Powell, sophomore Ava Brewer planned on driving to her dad’s house on U.S. Highway 14A, a routine drive to Cody. 

As she drove, her truck started fishtailing on a bridge after hitting black ice. She stalled until the truck regained traction, but it over-corrected, crashing into the guardrail. 

“It had been snowing and raining that day, and I knew that the road might be slick,” Brewer said. “I turned off my cruise control, but I just wasn’t ready for something like that.”

Upon the impact of hitting the guardrail, the truck flipped, sliding into the dirt. The right-side tail hit a hill, spinning the truck around on its top. 

“My Apple watch contacted 911 and my family when I crashed,” Brewer said. “So they knew [that I crashed], and that was what calmed me the most.”

When Brewer woke up, she was upside-down. She unbuckled and started crawling out, getting stuck at one point. She realized she had to exit the cab and finished crawling out of the truck. 

Once outside, she realized someone was nearby, and she sat down until the ambulance arrived. 

“I knew I had to keep my composure,” Brewer said. “I tried to stay as positive as possible.”

Brewer’s school backpack was thrown about twenty feet from the crash, and her coat was underneath her truck. 

Her head was scraped to the skull in some places, and she had plastic surgery a few days following the accident. She will have to go back and receive surgery in a year because there are still some spots that didn’t heal perfectly. 

Brewer’s left arm was also grated down to bone, and she got stitches in the emergency room. More than a month later, the arm has finally healed, and she is now working on putting muscle back in her arm.  

“If I wasn’t wearing my seatbelt, I don’t think I would still be here,” Brewer said. “Winter is a hard season to drive in. The only way I could’ve prevented that is if I was driving at a way slower pace.”

According to a Highway Safety Report from WYDOT, in winter weather-related crashes, 45% of drivers were going too fast for the conditions. 

A Consumer Affairs survey from December 2024 ranks Wyoming as the second deadliest state for winter driving. As beautiful as Wyoming may be, drivers should be wary of winter conditions. Icy roads, low visibility, and winter storms are unpredictable, and some dangers are hard to spot. 

“It’s called black ice for a reason,” Brewer said. “It’s unrecognizable and very slick; it’s not normal ice. ”

Brewer’s experience can serve as a powerful reminder of the importance of safety and caution during these winter months. She hopes her story inspires others to be vigilant and make smart choices on the road. 

“Drive as slow as you feel comfortable, and don’t be stupid,” Brewer said. “I want this story to be told, so no one has to be through what I have been through.”