Utah Mayor, 40, Killed in Head-On Crash with Semi-Truck: ‘A Devastating Loss for Our Community’

The community of Green River, Utah, is in mourning after its mayor, Ren Hatt, was killed in a collision with a semi-truck on Friday, Dec. 5.

City officials confirmed Hatt’s death in a social media post on Saturday, Dec. 6, following an update from the Utah Highway Patrol (UHP).

According to a UHP release, the crash occurred around 9:40 p.m. local time on U.S. Route 6. Troopers said a 2021 Freightliner semi-truck was traveling westbound when, for reasons that remain unclear, it drifted into the eastbound lanes and struck the front passenger side of a 2020 Hyundai Palisade.

After the impact, the Freightliner moved back toward the right side of the westbound lanes, while the Hyundai came to rest on the right side of the eastbound lanes. The driver of the Hyundai, later identified as Hatt, died from his injuries at the scene. The semi-truck driver was not hurt.

Investigators said the crash remains under investigation, but impairment is not currently suspected.

In its public statement, the city of Green River described the loss as heartbreaking, writing that the community is “devastated” by Hatt’s death. Officials remembered him as a leader who “loved this community deeply” and served with “honesty, kindness and unwavering commitment.”

“We are grieving alongside his family, friends, and all who knew him,” the city’s statement said, adding that more information will be shared when appropriate. “For now, we ask everyone to hold his family in their thoughts during this difficult time.”

Hatt’s fiancée, Maria Sykes, also shared an emotional message on Facebook announcing his death.

“Friends, I have to share terrible news. The love of my life, my fiancé and best friend, Ren Hatt, was killed in a car crash last night,” she wrote. “At this time I ask for prayers for our families, for me, and for the many, many people who loved him in his far too few 40 years on this earth.”

Hatt, 40, had recently secured a second term as mayor, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. A native of Green River, he grew up in the rural community and excelled as an all-state center fielder on Green River High School’s baseball team. He also showed an early interest in public service, serving as student body president during his time there.

After earning his law degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in 2014, Hatt worked as a policy specialist for Tennessee’s Medicaid office in Nashville. He later returned home to Green River to help manage his family’s business, Hatt Ranch, which offers pheasant hunting experiences.

In the years that followed, he worked with a local nonprofit organization and taught multiple subjects at Green River High School. In 2021, he ran his first campaign for mayor, following in the footsteps of his grandfather, Rey Lloyd Hatt, who served as the city’s mayor for 18 years, according to the Tribune. Hatt continued teaching at the high school while holding office.

Earlier this year, Hatt participated in a panel at Harvard University’s Bloomberg Center for Cities, where he spoke about how Green River was coping with declining federal funding. He explained that the city was increasingly turning to nonprofits, grant opportunities and public-private partnerships to support its economic development plans.

“We’re constantly adapting,” he said at the time. “The great thing about small towns is that we never have enough money, so we innovate — public-private partnerships and nonprofit collaborations … are some tools in our toolkit.”