Teenager suffers traumatic brain injury from E-Bike crash in St. George
SALT LAKE CITY — Nearly two weeks after suffering a devastating head injury in an e-bike crash, Bella Prince came home to her family.
Her mother, Debbie Prince, said the fact that she survived the crash is a miracle; Prince crashed into a retaining wall going 40mph, then flew 25 feet down a cliff and landed head-first. A police officer happened to witness the crash and called for help.
Like so many Utah teens, Bella was riding her e-bike without a helmet. She decided to take a new route and found herself careening down a steep hill, unable to stop herself.
“Neurosurgeons were able to get her into surgery within an hour from the time of the accident, within that ‘golden hour’ for head injuries,” Debbie Prince said.
She said Bella is doing miraculously well considering, but doctors expect lifelong side effects from this crash.
“I still see little signs of her, though,” Debbie Prince said, “like her humor.”
Right after her initial five-hour surgery, Bella insisted on paper and a pen. Her mother recounts asking,
“What do you need, baby? What can I get for you? She wrote on paper ‘Swig,’” Debbie Prince said.
The mother said Bella knew she should have been wearing a helmet.
“Bella told me, I understand now that I’m going to wear this scar for the rest of my life, that a helmet could have made the difference between life and death, between living with the outcome of this forever,” she said.
Debbie Prince said she hopes this accident is a clear message to other parents and their teens:
“She would have had such less trauma if she would have had a helmet on, it would have made the hugest difference.”
Legislation passed this session now makes helmets on e-bikes the rule, not simply a suggestion.
“You have to wear a helmet. You have to have a license. You’ve got to be have some training to ride on a road, like a driver’s license,” explained Representative Paul Cutler.
Cutler sponsored HB381 which passed both the House and Senate. Once signed by the governor, it will require helmets for e-bikes and give officers more power to enforce e-bike rules and go into effect May 6.
“If they’re underage or riding one of these super-fast scooters that are not legal on roads, then the police can hold that until the parent comes and gets it,” Cutler explained.
Previously, officers had to pursue charges and submit a bike as evidence in order to temporarily take it from a minor violating the law.
Cutler said the inspiration for the bill came directly from hospitals and healthcare workers who are seeing a growing number of cases like Bella’s.
The legislation will also create training materials for teens using e-bikes that will be available in 2027.
A fundraiser was created to help Bella and her family with recovery, which can be viewed here.
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