Colorado Man Killed in Head-On Crash on U.S. Highway 287 Near Laramie

David Foote, a 36-year-old Colorado resident, was killed when a northbound vehicle crossed into oncoming traffic on U.S. Highway 287 and struck his southbound car near milepost 415, south of Laramie. The Wyoming Highway Patrol confirmed the crash occurred just before 7:50 p.m. on April 2; one other person was injured in the two-vehicle collision.

The northbound car drifted into Foote's lane and hit his vehicle in a glancing, head-on impact. After the collision, Foote's southbound car left the road to the right, tripped, and rolled before coming to rest in a ditch. The northbound vehicle also departed the road to the right and came to an uncontrolled stop. The Laramie Boomerang's dispatch log recorded the emergency call at 7:48 p.m. at mile marker 415.

The Wyoming Highway Patrol is leading the investigation and has not yet released confirmed contributing factors. Investigators typically examine driver impairment, speed, mechanical condition, and weather conditions before issuing a final report.

The site near milepost 415 sits within one of Wyoming's most dangerous corridors. The 25-mile stretch of U.S. 287 between Laramie and the Colorado state line logged 545 total crashes between 2015 and 2024, including 11 fatal crashes resulting in 13 deaths, according to Wyoming Department of Transportation data. Older figures are more alarming: from 1990 to 2001, the corridor recorded 4.92 deaths per million vehicle miles traveled, more than twice the rate of comparable rural roads in Wyoming. Sixty-three percent of crashes on that stretch during the same period were head-on collisions, by far the deadliest crash type on a two-lane road.

Foote's death is the latest in a string of fatalities on the route widely known as the "Highway of Death." A head-on crash on October 17, 2025 killed two people on the same road. On February 22, 2024, three University of Wyoming swim team members died when their vehicle went into a ditch on U.S. 287.

Wyoming's statewide fatality count has accelerated sharply through early 2026. By mid-February, 13 people had died on state roads, more than double the six recorded at the same point in 2025. The state closed 2025 with 116 highway fatalities, the highest total since 2019.

U.S. 287 between Laramie and Fort Collins is a two-lane road with limited passing zones and notorious wind exposure. Before making the run, check tires and confirm brakes are road-ready. Travel at conservative speeds, especially after dark, keep following distances long, and treat every curve as a potential blind approach to oncoming traffic. Wyoming officials have long acknowledged there are no easy solutions to the highway's fatality rate, which makes every driver's decisions the most immediate safety variable on the corridor.