A 26-year-old Oklahoma woman died Friday afternoon after the utility vehicle she was driving rolled off a steep mountain road in Cocke County and struck a tree, according to a preliminary crash report. Amber Wiggins was behind the wheel of a 2025 Can-Am Defender, descending Snowbird Mountain on Grassy Fork Road with two passengers, when the vehicle left the roadway and tumbled down the mountainside.
The crash happened around 4:30 p.m. Friday as Wiggins drove southbound on the winding, rural road, according to a preliminary report from the Tennessee Highway Patrol relayed by WBIR. Troopers say the Can-Am traveled off the right side of the road, rolled down the mountainside, and struck a tree before coming to rest. The same outlet's report is also the basis for a separate account published by Newstalk 98.7, and the crash was additionally reported by WATE 6 On Your Side.
Wiggins was wearing her seatbelt at the time of the crash and died from her injuries. Of her two passengers, 29-year-old Kayla Wiggins was injured and was not wearing a seatbelt, while 54-year-old Patricia Wiggins was belted in, per the same preliminary report. State troopers have said no charges are pending in the investigation.
Family Was Visiting East Tennessee When Tragedy Struck
The Wiggins family had traveled to East Tennessee from Oklahoma at the time of the crash, The Smoky Signal's reporting on Tennessee Highway Patrol statements indicated. The family was traveling with a Can-Am Defender, the utility vehicle involved in the crash. Snowbird Mountain and Grassy Fork Road are identified in the crash reports.
What Tennessee Law Requires of UTV Drivers
Tennessee updated its rules governing utility terrain vehicles on public roads under SB 728/HB 810, which took effect in April 2025. The law, summarized by the Tennessee House Republican Caucus, allows UTVs and side-by-sides to operate on state highways and county roads with speed limits of 45 mph or lower, provided the operator is at least 16 years old, holds a valid driver's license, and uses installed safety equipment such as seat belts.
The same law requires drivers and passengers operating UTVs on public roadways to wear helmets, barring specific age or roadway exemptions, and classifies non-compliance with UTV operating standards as a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a $50 fine, according to the Tennessee House Republican Caucus's summary of the legislation.
A Pattern of Deadly Rollovers on Steep Cocke County Roads
National data underscores how dangerous off-highway vehicles can be. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has estimated roughly 1,360 product-related deaths tied to off-road vehicles nationwide in 2023.
Restraint and protective equipment use remains a central focus for investigators in crashes like this one. A safety statement shared by the Blount County Sheriff's Office says that 87% of ATV fatality crashes between 2013 and 2022 involved riders or operators with no helmet.
Friday's crash is not the first fatal mountain rollover investigated by the Tennessee Highway Patrol in Cocke County's steep terrain. Hoodline previously reported on a fatal rollover from October 2025, in which a construction dump truck backed over the edge of Rocky Top Road and tumbled down the mountain, killing a 58-year-old North Carolina man. The crash occurred on a steep mountain road in Cocke County.
The crash occurred on a steep mountain road in Cocke County.
