Update: Head-on collision in Madera County kills man, sends children to the hospital
Two people were ejected Thursday afternoon during a three-vehicle crash that killed one of them in Madera County.
The collision took place at 2:15 p.m. at Avenue 12 and Road 34 1/2 when one of the vehicles sideswiped a vehicle before colliding head-on with another vehicle.
California Highway Patrol spokesman Javier Ruvalcaba said officers arrived and noticed three vehicles involved in the collision with two people lying on the roadway.
He said a person was driving a gray Saturn Ion east on Avenue 12 at an unknown rate of speed when the driver appeared to pass another vehicle and went into the westbound lane and sideswiped a white Dodge Caliber, driven by a 22-year-old woman from Madera.
The impact caused the Dodge to spin around before it came to a rest on the south side of the road along an orchard, Ruvalcaba said.
He added the Saturn continued on in the westbound lane and collided head-on with a silver Chevrolet Traverse that was driven by a woman from Madera with two children, aged 9 and 11.
The impact caused the Traverse to overturn before coming to a rest on the north side of the road.
The Saturn continued for a short distance, Ruvalcaba said, in the east direction before coming to a rest on the eastbound lane.
A man and a woman in their early 30s in that vehicle were ejected with major injuries. The 25-year-old was taken to Madera Community Hospital, where he died, CHP said.
It is not known who was driving the vehicle, but Ruvalcaba said the woman had a severed left arm and broken bones. The man had head injuries and broken bones.
The woman and the two children had a complaints of pain and were taken to the hospital.
Alcohol or drugs likely contributed to the crash, CHP said Friday.
This story was originally published June 30, 2022 at 5:50 PM.
