MADERA, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) — Two people were injured in a double-vehicle collision near Highway 145 outside Madera, officials from the California Highway Patrol (CHP) say.
CHP says on Tuesday shortly after 1:00 p.m. officers responded to the report of a major injury crash on Highway 145, between Storey Road and Road 29. When they arrived at the location found a GMC pick-up truck on the right shoulder westbound side as well as a Ford pickup.
According to officials, the GMC was attempting to make a U-turn at the same time a Ford pickup was traveling westbound at approximately 55 mph.
Officials say the GMC driver, a Hispanic adult male, initiated the U-turn directly in front of the Ford pickup’s path and couldn’t avoid hitting it on the driver’s side.
CHP officials say the GMC driver sustained major injuries and was flown to a local hospital. There was also a woman in the passenger seat, 28-year-old Raquel Rodriguez, of Fresno, that sustained moderate to major injuries and was also transported to the hospital.
The driver of the Ford pickup, 65-year-old Carl Sagerquist, of Coarsegold, did not sustain any injuries and was wearing a seatbelt, officials say.
According to CHP, drugs or alcohol appear not to be a factor in this collision. Officers say the driver making the U-turn did not pay attention when attempting to do so.
The investigation into this incident is ongoing.