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HOLDEN, Millard County — One teen died and a man was transported to the hospital in critical condition after a 15-year-old with a learner’s permit crashed the vehicle they were traveling in Thursday, officials said.

A family of eight from Fruit Heights was on a road trip to California when the 15-year-old driver attempted to change from the outside lane on I-15 to an inside lane at 11:43 a.m., according to the Utah Highway Patrol. The teen was driving a 1999 GMC Suburban near Holden in Millard County.

“As she began the movement, she noticed another vehicle in the inside lane and swerved back to the right,” a statement from UHP says. “The driver overcorrected and lost control of the vehicle.”

Photo: Courtesy of UHP

Investigators said the suburban “went off the road to the right and rolled as the driver overcorrected back to the left.” Sophia Vasquez, 17, sustained fatal injuries while the suburban rolled across the lanes and into a median, according to UHP.

One passenger, a 19-year-old male, was transported to the Utah Valley Hospital by a medical helicopter in critical condition.

Investigators said all of the passengers in the vehicle were wearing seat belts except for the mother of the family.

Kevin Hampton, the Vasquez family's LDS Church bishop, said he was with Sophia Vasquez on Wednesday night.

“They were having a dance, getting ready to go on a pioneer trek, and the kids were just having a great time,” Hampton said. “She was just full of enthusiasm.”

Neighbors showed their support for the Vasquez family on Thursday night by hanging ribbons and balloons at their home, according to Hampton.

Kenzie Dickey joined with other members a church young women's group to hang white balloons signifying the peace that she said Sophia Vasquez represented. Dickey said Sophia Vasquez was the first person to talk to her when she moved in.

“She helped us to feel belonging and love and everything that a good friend should be,” Dickey said. “She is the definition of the perfect kid. Smart and kind to everybody.”

Contributing: Abby Hobbs, Andrew Adams

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