Man critically injured in four-wheeler accident

WASILLA -- A large Mat-Su family still reeling from the untimely death of one of four brothers this spring is now facing a second tragedy after a four-wheeler accident on Friday near Palmer left a second brother critically injured.

An official with Providence Hospital said Saturday afternoon that Jared Davidson, 33, remained in critical condition after being taken there by helicopter on Friday.

Emergency responders rushed to the Davidson family home off of Aspen Ridge Road near Palmer after they received a report that a man had suffered a severe head injury. A LifeMed helicopter landed at the home shortly after 5 p.m. to take Davidson to Anchorage.

Members of the family appeared crestfallen as the chopper flew away, and several children could be seen peering out a large picture window facing the scene where emergency responders had moments earlier worked to stabilize the injured man. A four-wheeler rested against a tree at the foot of a gravel driveway leading to the home.

Alaska State Troopers issued a dispatch early Saturday morning that said Davidson failed to negotiate a corner and rolled the four-wheeler. He was not wearing a helmet, and the press release said speed appears to have been a factor in the accident.

Davidson’s sister-in-law, Joy, learned of the crash after driving up the long dirt road to the house for what she thought was going to be a family barbecue. Instead, she found a helicopter and emergency vehicles blocking the driveway.

She said the circumstances of her brother-in-law’s accident were made even more tragic by the fact that Jared’s older brother, Justin, was killed in a May 3 car accident on Bogard Road. According to an account in the Frontiersman, Justin Davidson, 38, was not wearing a seat belt when he left the roadway and rolled his vehicle. He died at Mat-Su Regional Hospital. Authorities said speed also played a role in that accident.

Joy Davidson said Jared – one of four sons born to Harry and Judi Davidson of Palmer – was in Alaska helping look after a memorial to his fallen brother.

“That’s my husband’s youngest brother, who’s here to take care of his brother’s gravestone,” she said.

Harry and Judi Davidson's three-story log home – which is located in a sparsely populated area dominated by hay fields and dotted with small lakes – was the site of a memorial potluck for Justin Davidson this spring, according to their son's obituary in the Frontiersman.