Google fixes Utah navigation issue after worst incident yet

EMERY COUNTY, Utah (ABC4) — In recent years, Emery County has had a problem with drivers typing “Utah” into Google Maps and getting stuck on East Mountain. After pressure for the worst incident so farGoogle has fixed the problem.

Emery County Sheriff Tyson Huntington said they receive a call for help several times a month – usually around midnight or later – from a remote road on East Mountain.

The Emery County Sheriff’s Office ABC4.com provided information on nine cases over the past two years in which travelers were stranded on East Mountain – either lost, stuck or out of gas – even though their navigation system had directed them up the mountain road.

“We had a problem where people traveling to Utah would just type ‘Utah’ into their Google search … and then they would end up in this remote area of ​​our county,” Huntington said.

The travelers in the cases were often families and tourists from out of state who were unfamiliar with the area. He said they typed in “Utah” and followed directions to East Mountain, eventually calling 911.

In each case, search and rescue teams were able to help them and their cars get off the mountain, but officials say Friday’s incident was “the worst yet.”

An 18-wheeler hauling a 53-foot refrigerated container full of Red Bull was guided onto the road by its navigation system, but became stuck in the mud and staggered down a steep hill. The driver was rescued and the tractor-trailer was recovered the next day.

The sheriff’s office said it had contacted Google about 40 times over the past few years about the issue and even put up signs along the roads warning drivers not to continue on the road if they followed Google Maps to “Utah” or were not equipped for the terrain.

“We had to take these steps to contain the problems, but to date we have had no luck at Google,” Huntington said on June 3.

After the semi nearly fell down a hill over the weekend, the sheriff’s IT department reached out to Google again on Monday in hopes that something would change. ABC4 also reached out to the technology company on Friday (the day of the incident) and received a response saying they would provide a statement on Monday.

Before a Google spokesperson sent the statement late Monday afternoon, the problem had been resolved.

Huntington said he was “super excited” that the issue was fixed and he expects there will be significantly fewer calls from the area now that Google has changed the pin location for Utah.

“We are happy that (travellers) will no longer encounter this problem, it will not damage their vehicles or cause problems, and we will then be able to keep our resources in the most populated areas of our county,” he said.

He said that while it was not the drivers’ fault that they broke down, these incidents showed the importance of being prepared with water and granola bars and checking the route in advance.

“This shows that you can’t always predict what’s going to happen. We always have to be prepared for things we don’t expect,” he said. “If something seems strange or (not) right, stop and figure out what’s going on before you proceed.”

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