Speed was the cause of a one-car accident Friday that resulted in a sport utility vehicle flying over a guard rail and down a 35-foot embankment on Peterson Hill.

“It was speed, as always,” said Idaho State Trooper Jeff Jayne. “They were going too fast for conditions.”

Jeffrey Moss, 58, of Spruce Grove, Alberta, Canada, was driving north on Highway 95 when he lost control of the vehicle, which slid across three lanes of traffic. The 1995 Ford Explorer hit the guardrail and went 35 feet over the embankment.

“They claimed they were doing 60 to 70 kilometers per hour, which would have been 35 to 40 miles per hour, which was not consistent with the evidence at the crash scene,” said Jayne.

It took an hour to get  Moss and Jane T. Zavierucha, 57, also of Spruce Grove, out of their vehicle. Zavierucha was treated and released from Boundary Community Hospital for a non-life threatening back injury.  

“They put her in the stokes, covered her up, put hot packs on her and carried her up,” said Boundary Volunteer Ambulance worker Kris Peterson. “Usually they don’t go over the embankment like that. We have trained rescue people and they did a great job.”

Moss was cited for failing to maintain a designated lane.